This Week’s Feature Article by Jack Kelley

The Bible isn’t such a complex document that it requires years of formal education before you can begin to comprehend it. I’ve always believed the Bible was meant to be understood by any believer who can read and has a serious interest in knowing what it says. I say this because I believe the Bible is best approached by relying on the power of the Holy Spirit rather than one’s own intellect. James 1:5 says that any of us who lacks wisdom need only ask God who gives generously to all without finding fault.

Conversely the man without the Spirit can not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God regardless of his mental prowess. (1 Cor. 2:14) This is why we hear of people who tried to read the Bible as non-believers and found they couldn’t figure it out, but as soon as they were born again it began to make sense. They didn’t suddenly become more intelligent, they simply gained the supernatural insight of the Holy Spirit who teaches us all things. (John 14:26)

Over the 25 years or so I’ve been studying the Bible I’ve picked up a handful of principles that have also given me a better understanding of what it says. They help keep me honest so I know it’s the Holy Spirit teaching me, and not just my sin infested intellect coming to its own conclusion. From time to time I get asked about these principles, having mentioned them in answers to various questions, so here they are.

The Golden Rule of Interpretation

“When the plain sense of scripture makes common sense, seek no other sense; therefore, take every word at its primary, ordinary, usual, literal meaning unless the facts of the immediate context, studied in the light of related passages and axiomatic and fundamental truths, indicate clearly otherwise.” Dr. D.L. Cooper

This hasn’t become known as the Golden Rule of Interpretation for nothing. If you ignore all the others and only follow this one rule you will avoid almost all the mistakes people make in reading the Bible. And the next one is like it, sort of an expanded version of the first.

Literal, Historical, Grammatical, Contextual

These could be called the most important words in Biblical Hermeneutics, which is the science of properly interpreting the Bible.

Literal means that each word is given the same exact basic meaning it would have in normal, ordinary, customary usage, whether employed in writing, speaking or thinking. Unless it’s clearly indicated otherwise, we’re to assume the Bible means exactly what it says. Examples of passages that are not intended to be taken literally are parables, dreams, and visions. These are all identified as such, alerting us to the fact that they’re meant to be understood symbolically.

Historical means that each passage is put into its proper historical setting and surrounded with the thoughts, attitudes, and feelings prevalent at the time of its writing. In Biblical times the Jewish view of the Messiah was one of a charismatic leader like King David. In other words, a man, not God in human form. Knowing that helps us understand how they failed to recognize Him, and why they accused Him of blasphemy when He claimed to be God.

Grammatical means that words are given meanings consistent with their common understanding in the original language at the time of writing. Grammatical interpretation also includes following recognized rules of grammar and in its more advanced form, applying the nuances of the Hebrew and Greek languages to the understanding of a passage.

A good example showing the importance of following the rules of grammar can found in Daniel 9:27 where the subject of the first sentence in the verse is a personal pronoun. “He will confirm a covenant with (the) many.” The rule of grammar regarding personal pronouns is that they refer to the closest preceding personal noun. In this case it’s “the ruler who will come” in verse 26 indicating that the person who will confirm the covenant with Israel is the anti-Christ, not the Lord as some commentators assert.

Contextual interpretation involves always taking the surrounding context of a verse/passage into consideration when trying to determine its meaning. The Holy Spirit has usually prompted the Bible’s writers to place indicators in the text surrounding a passage to guide you in interpreting it. In 1 Cor. 9:24-27 Paul compares our life to that of an athlete, training and competing for crowns. The mention of crowns tells us the passage is not about salvation, which is a free gift, but rewards believers can win after being saved. (In this case it’s the crown of victory, awarded to those who overcome the ways of the flesh by getting rid of selfish desires, bad habits and attitudes, etc.)

When you stop to think about it, reading the Bible this way actually makes perfect sense. If you received a letter from a friend you wouldn’t have to be reminded to apply these principles. You would naturally assume that your friend was using words that meant the same thing to both of you. You would understand them within the parameters of your shared history, you would assume that the rules of grammar you had both been taught applied, and you would interpret what was written within the context of your relationship. You would expect your friend to alert you if any of these assumptions were not going to apply, and explain the reason for it.

The only difference with the Bible is that it was written over a long period of time, during which the meanings of some words changed, and society is generally different now than it was when the Bible was written. This makes books on Bible history and a good concordance valuable additions to your library.

Expositional Constancy

This is a fancy term to remind us that symbolism in scripture tends to be consistent. For example, through out the Bible leaven, or yeast, is used symbolically to stand for sin. Therefore there’s no justification for claiming that in the Parable of the Yeast (Matt. 13:33) and there alone, it stands for the Gospel. Expositional Constancy only applies to words that are used symbolically, so be careful. Peter’s statement in 2 Peter 3:9 that with the Lord a day is like 1000 years and 1000 years is like a day does not justify substituting 1000 years for a day every time it comes up. Peter was simply explaining that the Lord’s concept of time is way different from ours.

Internal Consistency

The Bible, being the word of God, cannot contradict itself. The Lord is just and righteous so He can’t say something in one place and something different in another. He knows the end from the beginning so He can’t change His mind or take back something He’s given. Everything He says has to agree with everything else He says. For example, if the Bible says it’s God who makes us stand firm in Christ, that He anointed us, set His seal of ownership on us and put His Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee of what’s to come (2 Cor. 1:21-22), then it can’t say that we can walk away from our salvation or have it taken away from us someplace else.

Principle Of First Mention

Often when an important concept is mentioned for the first time there is elevated significance in the context of the passage in which it appears. The first mention of the Church is in Matt.16:18 where Peter declared that Jesus is the Messiah, son of the living God. Jesus said that this truth would be the foundation upon which He would build His Church. Notice who’s going to be doing the building and whose Church it is. Studying the passage where an important concept first appears can be very helpful in interpreting subsequent passages on the same subject.

Use Clear Passages To Interpret Obscure Ones

Some passages of Scripture are more difficult to interpret correctly than others. When confronting one of these, it’s best to locate the clearest verses on the subject and use them to help interpret the difficult one. A classic example is Hebrews 6:4-6 which, when taken alone, seems to say that we can fall away and lose our salvation, and if that should happen we can never get it back. But the clearest verses on salvation are Ephesians 1:13-14 and 2 Cor. 1:21-22, and they plainly state the opposite. The Ephesians passage says we were included in Christ when we first heard and believed the gospel. Having believed we were sealed with the Holy Spirit, a deposit that guarantees our inheritance. In 2 Corinthians Paul went even further saying that God himself has accepted responsibility for making us stand firm in Christ and has set His seal of ownership on us, like a rancher brands his cattle.

Applying the principles above we must conclude that the writer to Hebrews had to be talking about something else. When we look at the context of the letter, we find that it was written to Jewish believers who were being lured back into the Levitical system, which used the sacrifice of a lamb to atone for sins. For the Church, the Lord’s death fulfilled what the sacrifice only symbolized, so going back to this was tantamount to sacrificing Him all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace, because by their actions they were saying that His death was not sufficient to atone for their sins.

And as if that wasn’t bad enough, going back to the sacrifice was no longer acceptable to God because the Law was only a shadow of the good things that are coming, not the realities themselves. For that reason it could never make perfect those who draw near to worship no matter how many times they repeated it. (Hebr. 10:1) But when the Lord offered His sacrifice once for all time, He made perfect forever those who are being made holy (Hebr. 10:12-14) During the Church Age all we have to do after sinning is confess our sins to receive forgiveness, be brought back to repentance, and be purified from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9) Now Hebrews 6:4-6 makes sense because it conforms to the internal consistency of God’s Word.

There are lots of other rules and principles man has developed for application to God’s word, but in my opinion if we just apply the ones I’ve listed above we’ll stand a good chance of avoiding the errors and misinterpretations that seem to be so common these days.

The Bible is quite simply the most incredible book ever written. Some parts of it were written at least 4000 years ago, and by 95AD its most recent chapters were finished. But according to Paul it was written to teach us, upon whom the end of the age has come. (Romans 15:4, 1 Cor. 10:11) If we’ll just read it the way we would any other document, as if it means what it says, the Holy Spirit will reveal wondrous truths from within its pages. Truths that will give us an anchor against the storms of deceit and controversy that have become so common in our time. Maybe that’s why it was written primarily to us. Selah 11-14-09

The other day I received an interesting response to my answer stating that the Bible supports an approximate 6000 year history for the human race. This person didn’t dispute the Bible, only our interpretation of it, in disagreeing with my answer.

The essence of his response was that since science has found what it considers to be persuasive evidence that contradicts the literal view of the creation account, then our traditional interpretation of the language in Genesis 1 has to be flawed.

The writer is a scientist and a Christian. He presented a calm and reasoned response claiming that every relevant field of science is in agreement that “enormous amounts of very convincing evidence exists for an old–very old–earth and even for evolution, including humans.”

Now I’ve said before that I’m OK with an old Earth. In other articles I’ve shown how an old Earth and young civilization are entirely compatible with a literal interpretation of Genesis 1. (Read More) But in his view the old Earth includes animals and other life, some of whom later evolved into humans. I’m not OK with that because the Bible says that animals came along on day 6, same as man.

He went on to ask, “So what is more likely, that thousands of highly educated, highly experienced, highly motivated, life-long scientists and thinkers are wrong about immeasurable amounts of finely done, peer reviewed data or that your interpretation of a document which is thousands of years old is ever so slightly incorrect?”

Then he repeated that He’s not contesting the accuracy of Scripture, only man’s interpretation of it.

Let’s set aside the fact that most of those thousands of highly educated, highly experienced, highly motivated, life-long scientists and thinkers are non-believers who don’t think the Biblical Creation account is even a remote possibility. We’ll consider only the believers among them, because they’re the ones who say that the Scripture is accurate, but our interpretation of it is flawed.

For all the generations from the dawn of creation until the early part of the 20th Century, almost all believers accepted the Lord’s account of the Six Day Creation. So what is it that we’ve “misinterpreted” for all these thousands of years?

It’s About Time

All believers agree that ultimately God is our Creator. So the basic conflict between the differing views of our origin really comes down to the time involved. Evolution requires millions of years, but the Bible says the creation was complete from start to finish in 6 days. Now there’s there’s only one sentence in the entire creation account that concerns time. Therefore the whole argument boils down to a claim that for all these generations we’ve misinterpreted one sentence. That one sentence, repeated 6 times, reads like this. “And there was evening, and there was morning, day (1-6) “ (Genesis 1:5,8,13,19,23,31) Furthermore, within that sentence there are only three words that relate to time; evening, morning, and day. If there’s been a misinterpretation, it has to be in one of those three words.

By the way, let’s address the Bible’s accuracy here in case you’re thinking maybe some words got changed along the way to cause our misinterpretation. According to Rabbinical sources, there are 79,847 words in the Torah, as the first five books of the Bible are called, made up of 304,805 Hebrew letters. Fewer than 2 dozen of these letters are in dispute, and then only for spelling differences. That means the Torah we have today is a 99.99% accurate copy of the one Moses originally wrote. We know this because every letter in Hebrew has a numerical value, so every line and every column of text has a correct sum. In hand copying the text every line was checked for accuracy by adding the sum of its letters and comparing it with the correct total. In the case of a difference, the page was destroyed, and the copyist started over. Remember, these people were entrusted with the very words of God and took that trust seriously.

Three Little Words

With that said, let’s take a look at the three words having to do with time.

The Hebrew word for evening is erev. It’s always translated evening, sunset or night.

The word for morning is boqer. There’s no question that it means morning. Hebrew speaking Jews greet each other at the beginning of each day with “Boqer tov” (good morning).

And the word for day is yomn. As does its English counterpart, yomn can have a figurative meaning as well as a literal one. Of its 2287 appearances in Scripture, 2008 describe a literal 24 hour day. In the figurative sense it can mean a longer span of time, such as in the phrase “Day of the Lord “ in Amos 5:18 where it refers to the 3.5 year long Great Tribulation.

But common sense tells us that when combined with evening and morning, as it is in each of the six references of Genesis 1, it’s meant to be taken literally, a single 24 hour period, because there are no figurative applications for the Hebrew words erev and boqer. And the Bible doesn’t say there were evenings and mornings, it says there was evening (singular) and there was morning (singular). One of each. And that means one 24 hour day.

We also have the first mention of the word day in Genesis 1:5 and it demonstrates the Lord’s intention for the word’s use.

And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and He separated the light from the darkness. God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day. (Genesis 1:3-5)

This verse established the way time would be reckoned. First there was evening, the beginning of the dark period, night, and then there was morning, the beginning of the light period, day. This cycle has repeated itself every 24 hours throughout history.

Are we supposed to believe that for almost all of human history the words evening, morning, and day haven’t meant what people thought they meant?

How Could This Be?

In an effort to reconcile the creation account with evolution, some believers try to give the Lord more time to do His work of creation. They call the six days of creation by a new name, “creation days”, implying that each one is more like an age than a 24 hour period. But the accepted meanings of the words evening, morning, and day don’t accommodate this dramatic stretching of time. The Hebrew language has other words for that purpose, so these words are never used to describe an age, especially when used together.

I also realize that some believers don’t accept the Bible as being the word of God. They say it merely contains it. This allows them to discard parts of the Bible with which they disagree. Some discard the entire Old Testament, including the creation account, as little more than a collection of folk tales. But in Romans 15:4 Paul said that everything that was written in the past was written to teach us. In 1 Cor. 10:1-11 he cited a number of events from Israel’s history when the people rebelled and were disciplined. Then he said that these things happened to them as warnings for us on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come. And in 2 Timothy 3:16 he said that all scripture is God-breathed, or as we would say, written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness. In all these cases he had to be referring to the Old Testament, since the New testament didn’t exist yet. Who are we to dispute this and ignore his warnings? The Old testament is the inspired Word of God, just like the New, and is meant to play an important role in a believer’s life.

But between the liberal denomination I grew up in and the public schools I attended, evolution was the only explanation of our origins I ever heard until I was well into adulthood. Sure God was our creator, but evolution was the way He did it. No body I knew thought to even question it. It wasn’t till I was born again at age 40 that I heard any teaching about the Creation, and then it was something I had to seek out for myself. I’m sure thousands of you had similar experiences growing up.

In the last 100 years or so, a heresy called the documentary hypothesis has infested liberal theology. This hypothesis makes the claim that Moses didn’t write the Torah, but that it was pieced together long afterward from writings by several unrelated groups. Proponents of this view ask us to ignore the fact that Moses is mentioned by name in 85 verses of the New Testament, and that among them are multiple references to his authorship of the 5 Books of the Torah, including direct quotes from the Lord Himself. Was Jesus unaware of the real authors of these passages He quoted? Was he just going along with a tradition He knew was false, or did He know that Moses had written them?

Stop And Think

As you can see, these reasons for denying the 6 day creation won’t stand the test of rational thought. They’re just excuses people use to disregard the truth.

Most scientists don’t say, “Our science is based on universally accepted assumptions, and yet our findings disagree with the Creator’s account of what He did. Our assumptions must be incorrect. “

Instead they say, “Our science is based on universally accepted assumptions, and yet our findings disagree with the Creator’s account of what He did. His account must be incorrect.”

“For who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct him?” (1 Cor. 2:16)

I can understand non-believers searching for an alternative to the Biblical account. They have to find one in order to justify their disbelief. But how can scientists who are Christian actually think man can know more about how we were created than the One who did it, to a point where they can dispute the accuracy of the Creator’s account?

For it is written: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.” (1 Cor. 1:19)

The time will come when we’ll know everything, just like God does. At that time we won’t have to take His word for anything. As Paul said, “We will know fully as we are fully known.” (1 Cor. 13:12) Until then I don’t believe we have the right to pick and choose what parts of His Word we want to believe. We certainly don’t have the perspective. “Who has known the mind of the Lord? we’re asked, Or who has been his counselor?” (Romans 11:34) Selah 10-31-09

I received a great question this week. A regular visitor wanted to know, is evil a “thing” or the “absence of good”?   The writer went on to say, “I understand how evil entered creation via the fall, but it seems to me that something (evil) that had never existed before suddenly came to be.”

It seems to her that this thing we call evil which didn’t exist in God’s perfect creation had to have an origin.

“Was that Satan?” she asked. “Did he/does he have a form of destructive de-creative power to bring something to be that wasn’t?”

In essence, did Satan “create” evil? Let’s find out.

In his Gospel, the Apostle John addressed the issue of whether evil is merely the absence of good. Speaking of Jesus in terms of light and darkness, he wrote;

Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it. (John 1:3-5)

The word translated understood here also means overcome, but either way if the darkness John referred to was simply the absence of light, as we know it to be, then by it’s very presence the light would have replaced it. Darkness is not an entity or force and can neither understand nor overcome. It always yields to light, returning only when light is withdrawn.

And if John was talking merely in terms of physical life and death, as some understand the passage, the same would be true because by definition death is the absence of life. So John had to be speaking in the spiritual sense. The light represents the Lord Jesus, the personification of good. The darkness that cannot overcome Him represents Satan, the prince of darkness and the personification of evil. So evil is not simply the absence of good.

John 1:3-5 also contains the answer to another question. Did Satan create evil? Again, speaking of Jesus John wrote, Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.

Paul confirmed this in his letter to the Colossians.

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 1:15-16)

If you read these two passages as being all inclusive, as I do, then you have to conclude that Satan, who is himself a created being, did not create evil.

Where Did That Come From?

So where did evil come from? Ezekiel and Isaiah have the answer.

The word of the LORD came to me: “Son of man, take up a lament concerning the king of Tyre and say to him: ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says:

” ‘You were the model of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone adorned you: ruby, topaz and emerald, chrysolite, onyx and jasper, sapphire, turquoise and beryl. Your settings and mountings were made of gold; on the day you were created they were prepared.” (Ezekiel 28:11-13)

Through the first 10 verses of chapter 28 Ezekiel had been speaking to Ittobaal, the human ruler of Tyre, calling him the prince of Tyre. Beginning in verse 11 the Lord had him look past the the human figurehead to the power behind the throne, Satan, who Ezekiel addressed as the King of Tyre.

Some commentators see the mention of precious stones as representing the fact that Satan was clothed in light. But one fact is clear to all. Satan was created, confirming what John and Paul said. He was not created to be evil, and in fact was the model of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.

“You were anointed as a guardian cherub, for so I ordained you. You were on the holy mount of God; you walked among the fiery stones.” (Ezek. 28:14)

Satan’s original role was to head up the squadron of Cherubim who guard the Throne of God. Among men, those chosen for the palace guard are considered to be the most loyal, highly skilled, and trustworthy, the finest examples of the King’s warriors. As the leader of such a group charged with protecting the Throne of God, Satan would have been among the most admired of all created beings.

“You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created till wickedness was found in you. Through your widespread trade you were filled with violence, and you sinned. So I drove you in disgrace from the mount of God, and I expelled you, O guardian cherub, from among the fiery stones. Your heart became proud on account of your beauty, and you corrupted your wisdom because of your splendor”. (Ezek. 28:15-17a)

It Didn’t Need To Turn Out That Way

Like I said, Satan was not created to be evil. But like all of us, he had the potential for choosing evil. He was the most beautiful, wise, and powerful of all God’s created beings and became very proud of these things. It was this pride that caused his downfall , and when he was caught out his pride would not let him submit, so he rebelled. Isaiah 14:13-14 tells how he set out to elevate himself above the angels once again, to sit enthroned in the place of God, and become like God.

You said in your heart, “I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain. I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.”

In his pride Satan demanded that glory due only to God be redirected toward himself. In doing so he gave us the Biblical definitions of good and evil. Everything that yields to God or or glorifies Him is good, and everything that rebels against God or glorifies someone or something else is evil.

God Himself appears to hold this view. Look at Isaiah 42:8;

“I am the LORD; that is my name! I will not give my glory to another or my praise to idols.”

Shortly after the Creation, Satan introduced this evil into the world by convincing Adam and Eve to break the only rule God had given them. This seemingly minor act of rebellion caused all of mankind’s potential for evil to be greatly magnified and made rebellion man’s natural state. Paul called it our sin nature and it turned the Creation upside down. Where Satan had been made as the model of perfection with the potential for choosing evil, mankind would hereafter be predisposed toward evil with the potential for choosing to be made perfect. (In other words, Satan had to choose evil. We have to choose good.) And what’s more Satan no longer had to personally see to every act of evil. By orchestrating that one act of disobedience he had set mankind on a downward spiral that soon resulted in a state where every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time (Genesis 6:5).

Things Are Not Always As They Seem

It’s important to recognize that evil is not merely a type of behavior. In fact it’s more a function of intent. That makes evil a motivating force behind behavior. It’s easy for us to judge behavior that’s obviously destructive, cruel, or immoral as being evil. But behavior that outwardly seems to produce much good can still be considered evil in God’s sight unless it’s undertaken in submission to Him for the purpose of glorifying Him. The end does not justify the means with God. Motives must be pure to make actions pure.

This is something most people simply do not understand. We think something that looks good or produces a good result must be good. But the Bible is clear. It’s the motive energizing our behavior that really counts, no matter how good the result looks to us or to others. Like the Lord said, “A bad tree cannot bear good fruit.” (Matt. 7:18)

Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men’s hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God. (1 Cor. 4:5)

So evil is a spiritual power, a motivating force that began with a choice. It originated when a created being demanded to be treated as if he was the Creator and went downhill from there. The consequences of that choice are suffered by each one of us every day. It took the death of God’s own Son to reverse its effect on us, and then only if we choose to allow it.

For those who don’t, God will again say;

“I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I am surely going to destroy both them and the earth.” (Genesis 6:13)

The choice is clear and the time is near. Even so come Lord Jesus. Selah 10-03-09

Table of contents for Living In Hard Times

1. From This Day On I Will Bless You
2. O You Of Little Faith
3. Where Your Treasure Is
4. Kingdom Dollars

A Bible Study by Jack Kelley

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.” (Matt. 6:19-20)

US dollars are backed by the “full faith and credit” of the United States government, not by the approximately 147 million ounces of gold in Fort Knox, like they used to be. (At $1,000 dollars per ounce that’s $147 billion worth. The latest reliable estimates put the total dollars in circulation or on deposit at $8.3 trillion, so even if the dollar was backed by gold there’s less than 2 cents worth of gold behind each one.)

So the value of a dollar is determined by how confident the rest of the world is in the stability of the US economy. China holds the largest amount of dollars in reserve, about 2 trillion, and has about $800 billion more in bonds they hold. China has let it be known that their confidence in the dollar has been shaken by the recent economic turmoil in the US. Russia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and others feel the same way. And recently the UN has joined China and others in calling for a new, more stable currency to replace the dollar in world markets. Rest assured, if these countries can find a way to replace the dollar they’ll do so, and the value of the dollar will decline even more rapidly.

They’ll do this because they know the US has recently been flooding the market with money that isn’t worth the paper it’s printed on and sooner or later it will trigger an inflationary spiral that will further erode the dollar’s value. In the current round of Economic Summit meetings other nations are insisting that the US agree to stop spending (printing money) and start saving. But they don’t believe our government is willing to exercise the necessary restraint to make this action effective. Therefore their choice is to do something and lose a little now or do nothing and lose a lot later.

Meanwhile, Back At Home …

At the same time experts in this country believe that unemployment will remain high for another year or so. They believe that many more homes, perhaps more than a million, will soon enter foreclosure. They know that the commercial real estate and credit card markets are still in trouble and could trigger another recession, even before we’re out of this one. Lately, I’ve been seeing more references to “recession part 2″ in financial commentaries as a possibility for 2010.

It’s also been reported that a new phenomenon, called Strategic Default or “walkaway”, has come on the financial scene. It involves home owners with good credit scores who are often current on their payments deciding to just walk away from their mortgage obligations. They do this because they don’t believe they’ll ever get back to an equity position in their home. According to the LA Times there were over 580,000 cases nationwide last year, more than double 2007’s total, and current indications are that this number is continuing to grow. (In California where the once booming market has gone bust, walkaways were 68 times higher in 2008 than in 2005.)

Because of all this uncertainty, some people look at converting their cash into other currencies, like Euros or Yen, to protect themselves against the possibility of the dollar’s sudden demise, but quickly realize those currencies are just as volatile.

Still others enter the gold and silver markets, not understanding that this is just a place to temporarily park assets until the economy improves. You can’t spend the coins you buy. No matter how much the gold in your five dollar gold piece is worth, your neighborhood grocer is only going to give you five buck’s worth of food for it. You have to find a buyer who’ll give you paper money for your gold before you can spend it. If the economy never rebounds, you might be out of luck.

Bible prophecy says the world will get to a point one day where people will labor all day just to make enough money to buy their food for the day. (Rev. 6:6) There won’t be any left over for rent, utilities, car payments, or anything else. This won’t happen because food is so scarce, but because money will be worth so little. Therefore, trying to save up enough to get you through those times is an exercise in futility. In periods of run away inflation, savers are penalized by the consistent decline in the value of their savings.

For example, it takes 12 of today’s dollars to equal the purchasing power one dollar had at the end of WW2, and over that time annual inflation averaged less than 4% per year. The dollar’s purchasing power could erode that significantly in a matter of months during a period of runaway inflation.

But my purpose here is not to present a seminar on economics. It’s to introduce the only investment strategy that can protect you against catastrophic loss if the bottom falls out from under us. It involves exchanging earthly dollars, that have steadily declined in value in both good times and bad, for Kingdom dollars that cannot decline in value, or be lost or stolen.

There are two goals in this strategy. The first is to comfortably survive the coming hard times in what’s left of this life (Surviving), and the second is to create wealth for the next one (Thriving). You can do both starting today.

Goal 1. Surviving

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” (Matt. 6:25,33)

A couple of years ago, I started warning people to either voluntarily change the way they live or wait till they’re forced to change involuntarily. Since then many have been forced to significantly adjust their lifestyles, and many more are teetering on the brink. Yet I don’t hear stories of churches filling up with people seeking after the Lord’s righteousness.

If you survived the first round of financial turmoil unscathed, don’t think you’ll automatically be immune to the next one. I truly believe that the Lord is allowing every source of security to be systematically stripped from us until only He is left. Make it easy on yourself. Take the first step now. Seek His kingdom and His righteousness and begin to feel the burden of worry lifting from your back, and the smile returning to your face, as you let Him take responsibility for your well being. The Lord is the only one capable of carrying us through the difficulties yet to come.

Goal 2. Thriving

Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. (2 Cor. 9:6,8)

Waiting for the Lord to bless you before you start investing in His work is like waiting for a stove to give you heat before throwing in some wood. Sowing always precedes reaping, so start where you are. Recall how grateful you are that the Lord has saved you, and where you’d be heading had He not done so. Then express your gratitude by investing in His work. You don’t have to look around for an area of need. Just find a place where it’s obvious the Lord is already working and pitch in. Give gratefully and generously according to your ability. And remember, every time you do you’re exchanging earthly dollars for Kingdom dollars.

Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. (2 Cor. 9:10)

Soon you’ll see other areas where you could help and you’ll find you have an increased ability as well. Where at first you only had a dollar to invest, you’ll see you now have two. Fight the tendency to hold some back and increase your giving instead, always with an attitude of gratitude. The main thing to remember here is that giving with the expectation of receiving isn’t being generous, it’s being greedy. (That’s the first fatal flaw in the so-called prosperity gospel.)

You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God. (2 Cor. 9:11)

Most people worry that they’ll never be able to afford giving even 10% to the Lord. But people who follow this strategy in good faith eventually find themselves giving 30-40% and still have more than enough for themselves. If you work for a salary, it’s hard to imagine how this could work. But remember all money comes from the Lord, regardless of who signs your paycheck, and He has an unlimited amount. Show him you can be a good steward with what He’s giving you now and you’ll get an increase, because He promised that those who are faithful with a little will be given more. But for those who are not, even the little they have will be taken away from them. The evidence is all around us.

The first half of 2 Cor. 9:11 is so exciting to us that we forget the second half. Yes, we can be made rich in every way, but it’s so we can be generous on every occasion. And that’s prosperity gospel’s second fatal flaw. Wealth is not a gift to be wasted on indulgences for our personal benefit, it’s a trust to be administered for the benefit of others. Spending money we don’t have on things we don’t need is neither an expression of gratitude nor a demonstration of generosity. On the contrary, it’s evidence that if the Lord gave us more money, we’d just become greedier.

Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. (Lamentations 3:22-23)

No matter how far upside down you are financially, you’re not beyond the Lord’s help. The very day you determine in your heart to abandon your self indulgent ways and begin to express your gratitude and demonstrate your generosity, He’ll go to work with you to help make the future different.

And remember, generosity is not a number, it’s a state of mind. It’s not how much you invest in His work that matters so much as the motive in your heart while you’re doing it. Remember the widow’s mite? (Luke 21:1-3)

“Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” (Luke 6:38)

The bottom line is that this investment strategy pays better than any other you can find. And it’s also unbeatable for overall security. The Lord’s bank can’t fail, inflation will never erode your earnings, and nothing can ever cause the value of your investment to decline. Also, we can see from the examples I’ve cited that your returns are payable both in this world and in the next. What other investment do you know of that can promise that?

And talk about safe. The value of Kingdom dollars is backed by the full faith and credit of the Almighty Himself. The value of earthly dollars is only backed by the full faith and credit of the US government. Are you OK with that?

“Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” (Luke 12:15)

The only condition the Lord imposes on this strategy is that we stop conforming to the patterns of this world and allow our minds to be transformed where it comes to our relationship with Him. (Romans 12:1-2) That means we start giving Him the final say in determining the direction of our lives, and expressing our gratitude for what He’s done for us by becoming a channel through which He can bless the world around us. When we do, we’ll discover that we feel more gratitude, demonstrate more generosity, and in turn we’ll experience greater returns. . We can’t lose. Selah 09-26-09

(At sunset on Sept. 18, 2009 Israel began year 5770 on the Hebrew Calendar. As I often do with articles that commemorate annual events, I have updated this study on the Fall Feasts and added new information for your review. As you can see, I’m also posting it a day early to coincide with the start of Rosh Hashanah.)

The fall is arguably the most important time of the year in Judaism. Three of Israel’s holiest days are celebrated then, and all in the space of 15 days. They are Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, followed 10 days later by Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, and 5 days after that the week long Feast of Tabernacles. On our calendar they usually fall (no pun intended) some time between mid September and early October due to the differences between the Jewish (lunar) calendar and the western (solar) one.

Each of these holy days has both historical and prophetic significance, the prophetic fulfillment to occur on the day itself. Therefore Christians study them for glimpses into the future as well as to gain a better understanding of Jewish culture.

Happy New Year

Gentiles are sometimes confused in their studies of these holy days by the fact that the Lord changed the Jewish calendar at the time of the Exodus (Exodus 12:2). What had been the 7th month was thereafter to be the first, moving the beginning of the year to the spring, 10 days before Passover.

But because of the harvest, the Jews retained their original calendar as well, so now they have a religious year which begins in the spring and a civil year beginning in the fall. Therefore the Jewish New Year has always been celebrated in the fall and remains so today. This feast is known by two names, Yom Teruah, which means day of blowing but is called the Feast of Trumpets, and Rosh Hashanah, which means “head of the year”.

Rosh Hashanah is a time of new beginnings. According to some Jewish traditions, the creation was completed on Rosh Hashanah, and therefore Adam was born on that day as well.  Many students of prophecy place the birth of the Messiah on Rosh Hashanah, giving the day it’s historical fulfillment, and believe that the beginning of Daniel’s 70th week and 7 years later the Lord’s Second Coming will also occur on Rosh Hashanah, fufilling it’s prophetic significance.

Others think that the Rapture of the Church will happen on Rosh Hashanah, but I’m convinced that the Rapture is a number specific event rather than a date specific one, meaning the Church will be raptured when “the full number of gentiles has come in” making the day and hour unknown to us in advance, except that it will precede Israel’s re-awakening (Romans 11:25) and Daniel’s 70th week. (Acts 15:15-16)

I’m also convinced that Paul’s reference to the Rapture happening at “The Last Trump” (1 Cor. 15:52) should not be used to connect it to the Feast of Trumpets.  He spoke of the same event In 1 Thes. 4:16 saying it would be accompanied by the trumpet call of God.  Some scholars say there are two trumpets of God that recall the two horns of the ram caught in the thicket as Abraham prepared to sacrifice Isaac. They call the Trumpet of Exodus 19:13 the left one, or First Trump, and say that God will call the Israelites back to the Land in the End Times by blowing the right one, or Last Trump.  If, as I suspect, this will occur in conjunction with the Battle of Ezekiel 38, then my belief that the Rapture will take place before Ezekiel’s battle would be confirmed.

Religious Jews believe that in Heaven, books recording the deeds of mankind are opened on Rosh Hashanah for an annual review of man’s behavior. To this end, they spend the previous month in a sincere effort to right all the wrongs they may have committed during the year just ending.

When the books are opened, the names of those whose life has been exemplary in every respect are entered into the book for another year of life, while those who have demonstrated no redeeming qualities at all are scheduled for death. Since normal bell curve distribution would indicate that very few fit at either extreme, the majority are given 10 days until Yom Kippur to “get right with God.” These 10 days are called the Days of Awe where each man’s destiny hangs in the balance as he goes about asking forgiveness from friends and neighbors for sins he’s committed in the year just past. A common greeting among Jews during the Days of Awe is, “May your name be written in the Book.”

On the first afternoon of Rosh Hashanah (it’s a two day celebration) Orthodox Jews go to a running brook or stream where fish swim and throw pebbles or crumbs they’ve gathered into the water, symbolizing God’s casting away of their sins. While doing so, they recite Micah 7:18-20. “Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of his inheritance? You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy. You will again have compassion on us; you will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea. You will be true to Jacob, and show mercy to Abraham, as you pledged on oath to our fathers in days long ago.”

This is one of the most eloquent descriptions of God’s grace to be found anywhere in Scripture. It reminds God of His promise to be merciful to them in the coming judgment of Yom Kippur.

The fish’s dependence on water symbolizes their dependence on God. The fact that fish can’t close their eyes reminds them to be thorough because God sees everything. This ceremony is called Tashlich, Hebrew for “You will cast”, a reference to hurling their iniquities into the sea in  Micah 7:19.

Judgment Time

Ten days later, on Yom Kippur, judgment is rendered, the books are closed and everyone’s fate is sealed for another year.

Yom Kippur was the only day of the year when it was permissible to speak the Name of God. Yes God does have a name, but it’s not Jehovah or Yahweh. These names were created out of the four letters that Hebrew scribes used to represent God’s name in the Old Testament. Wherever the word LORD appears all in caps, you’ll find the Hebrew letters JHVH, (or YHWH) in the Hebrew text. Theologians call these four letters the tetragrammaton, which is Greek for “four letters”.  So, in effect these four letters are God’s initials, standing for His real name.

Since Hebrew has no vowels, early English language translators added an E, an O, and an A, (vowels they took from from Elohim, a form of the Hebrew word meaning God and Adonai, Hebrew for Lord) to JHVH and created the name Jehovah. We used to think that was God’s name. And in Hebrew the four letters are pronounced yod, hay, wah, hay, which probably gave rise to the “Yahweh” we use today. Neither one is really His name.

It was forbidden for Jews to speak God’s actual name except for once a year on Yom Kippur when it was spoken 10 times. After the Temple was destroyed, the Yom Kippur ceremony gradually changed until the name of God ceased to be used and was subsequently lost.

So no one alive today knows God’s name, and it probably hasn’t been spoken on Earth for about 1700 years. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Philippians 2:9-11 says that Jesus, or if you prefer the Hebrew, Yeshua is now the name above all names.

Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Back to Yom Kippur.   During a great and awe inspiring ceremony at the Temple, two goats were brought before the High Priest. One was a goat “for the Lord” to be presented as a peace offering as commanded in Lev. 16:7-10. The other was called “the scapegoat” because all the sins of the nation were symbolically placed upon its head, and then it was led outside the city to be killed. The goat had done nothing to deserve this but was chosen to demonstrate the fact that only the shedding of innocent blood could atone for the sins of the people. The death of the two goats symbolically set aside the sins of the nation, made their peace offering acceptable and gave them peace with their Creator. The people spoke the Name of God in heartfelt thanks.

Here are a couple of interesting tidbits from Jewish tradition.  When the goats were brought before the High Priest, their respective roles in the ceremony were determined by lot. Two golden lots were placed in a golden bowl and as he placed his hand upon the head of each goat, the High Priest reached into the bowl and pulled out one of the lots. Before the cross, the goat that was to be presented to the Lord as a peace offering always turned out to be on the right hand of the High Priest. After the cross it never was.

While the scapegoat was symbolically receiving the sins of the people upon its head a scarlet ribbon was tied from one of its horns to the door of the temple. When the time came for the goat to be taken into the wilderness the ribbon was cut, leaving some on its horn and some on the door. At a predetermined location outside the city, the goat was pushed off a cliff and fell to its death. In all the years before the cross, at the moment of the scapegoat’s death, the remnant of ribbon on the temple door turned from red to white symbolizing the passage from Isaiah 1:18, “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be white as snow.” After the cross this never happened again. The One Who now sits at the right hand of the Father and Who had fulfilled the dual role that the two goats only symbolized had come and forever taken away the sins of all who would choose to accept Him.  (Source: The Fall Feasts Of Israel.  Authors Mitch and Zhava Glaser, Publisher Moody Press.)

The Law Is Only A Shadow …

In Christendom a view holds that the Lord Jesus began His ministry on Yom Kippur announcing in effect that the judgment that was due mankind would be borne by Him (Luke 4:16-21) and that man no longer need live in fear of judgment nor have to endure the 10 Days of Awe every year.

It’s easy to see the Lord in the role of our scapegoat, whose shed blood purchased our pardon forever (Hebrews 10:11-14) but He was also our peace offering. “He is our peace, Who has broken down every wall.” (Ephe 2:14)

In the prophetic sense, Tribulation survivors from the nations will receive their fulfillment of the Yom Kippur judgment in the days immediately following the Lord’s return. This is described to us in the Sheep and Goat judgment (Matt 25:31-46) where Gentiles who’ve cast their sins at the foot of the cross during the Great Tribulation will be granted life in the Kingdom, and those who haven’t will be sent away for death. Their willingness to help believing Jews during the Great Tribulation will be evidence of their faith.  In Matt. 19:28 the Lord told His disciples that the judgment of Jews who survive would take place then, too.

For those of all ages who reject the Lord’s vicarious atonement, the prophetic fulfillment of Yom Kippur will come at the end of the Millennium in the so-called Great White Throne judgment, when all the unsaved dead are brought back to life to be judged according to their works. (Rev. 20:11-15).

Happy Thanksgiving

The Feast of Tabernacles comes five days after Yom Kippur. It was a harvest celebration and is the inspiration for the American Thanksgiving Day. It began as a seven-day feast, later expanded to eight, when all the tithes the Israelites had set aside during the year were brought to Jerusalem for a joyous time of national celebration and thanksgiving for the Lord’s bountiful provision. The aroma of delicious foods cooking over open fires permeated the whole city. For seven days where ever you went there was an air of joy and festivity as the people remembered their Provider and gave thanks. (Deut. 14:22-26).

Historically the Feast of Tabernacles commemorates the time of God’s dwelling with the Israelites in the wilderness. Its prophetic fulfillment comes in the Millennium when the Lord will once again dwell among His people; with the Church in the New Jerusalem (Rev 21) and Israel in Jehovah Shammah, the new name of the Holy City in the Promised Land. (Isaiah 62:2 & Ezekiel 48:35)

Somewhere along the way a water libation ceremony was added to the Feast of Tabernacles. Each morning a procession of priests would descend the steps from the Temple to the Pool of Siloam and dip a silver pitcher into the water.  Carrying the water back to the altar, they would pour it into the ground that had been exposed by the removal of a paving block near the altar, while offering prayers for rain. The purpose of this daily ceremony was to remind God to bring the fall rains needed to prepare the ground for planting. In Israel it doesn’t rain during the summer and the ground gets very hard. Gentle rains are needed to soften the ground so it can be prepared for the fall planting.

On the last day of the feast the High Priest himself would officiate and on this day instead of a silver pitcher one of pure gold would be used. The High Priest would be dressed in all his finest and attended by a huge contingent of similarly attired priests, blowing trumpets, singing psalms, and waving palm branches. When it was first described to me, I was struck by its beauty and pageantry. I’ve since read that extra balconies were set up around the Court of the Priests so more people could observe it.

One year just as the High Priest was about to pour the water into the ground, a loud voice interrupted the ceremony shouting, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.” (John 7:37-38) It was Jesus and He was referring to the Holy Spirit, who believers would soon receive. This caused many to believe that He was indeed Israel’s Messiah. (We’re not told what the High Priest’s reaction was, but it couldn’t have been pleasant.)

Let’s Get Spiritual

Following the thought that events that were external and physical in the Old Testament are often internal and spiritual in the New, there is a sense in which these holy days also reflect the life of the believer.

As Jesus came to live in the world at His birth (Rosh Hashanah), so He comes to live in our hearts at our new birth. As He required the shedding of innocent blood to reconcile Himself with Israel (Yom Kippur) so He shed His own Blood to reconcile Himself with us. As He dwelt with the Israelites in the wilderness of Midian (Tabernacles), so He dwells with us in the wilderness of Earth. “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age,” He promised. (Matt 28:20) Even so, Come Lord Jesus. (Rev. 22:20) You can almost hear the Footsteps of the Messiah.

There are two popular phrases people use in connection with the End Times to discourage speculation about just when the Rapture might take place. One is “like a thief in the night”, and the other is “no one knows the day or the hour”.

It’s been suggested from time to time that I’m sometimes “overly specific” in my teaching on the subject of End Times prophecy (even though I’ve never proposed either a day or an hour) so I’ve undertaken a study of these two phrases to see if I’m guilty as charged.

Let me say from the outset that I don’t believe the day or hour of the Rapture can be known in advance by anyone on Earth because I don’t believe it’s set to happen on any specific day or at any specific hour. I believe it’s set to happen when a specific number of born again believers is reached, and I base that conclusion on my understanding of Romans 11:25.

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.

There are two Greek words in this verse that lend critical support to a proper understanding. The first is translated “full number”. It’s a nautical term that describes the pre-determined number of sailors necessary to operate a ship. Until the ship had its full number of crew members, it could not sail. This is why ship captains sometimes got unsuspecting  men drunk and kidnapped them late at night and then set sail immediately. And the second, translated “come in” is also a nautical term that described the ship’s arrival at its intended destination.

By using these terms, Paul was saying that the hardening of Israel’s heart will not be fully removed until the Church reaches its pre-determined number and has been taken to heaven. There’s nothing arbitrary about God’s action here.  He has already determined the number and will take the Church to its intended destination as soon as that number is reached. But as far as I can tell no one on Earth knows either the full number or the current number. All we can know is that we’ll be Raptured when the full number of Gentiles has come in and it could literally happen on any given day. Then we’ll disappear, the blinders will come off Israel and the 70th Week will commence.

Now, back to the topic at hand. What do these two phrases mean and are they intended to discourage speculation about the timing of the Rapture?

Like A Thief

When you take out the duplications, this phrase appears 4 times in the New Testament. Let’s look at each one and see what it’s telling us.

Now, brothers, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, “Peace and safety,” destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. But you, brothers, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief. (1 Thes. 5:1-4)

This is Paul’s only use of the phrase. It’s clear He was speaking of the day of the Lord, and that while it will come as a surprise to unbelievers, events leading up to it should not surprise us. He made no mention of the Rapture here.

But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare. (2 Peter 3:10)

Here’s Peter’s only use of the phrase, and again the reference is to the End Time Judgments, not to the Rapture.

Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; obey it, and repent. But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you. (Rev. 3:3)

“Behold, I come like a thief! Blessed is he who stays awake and keeps his clothes with him, so that he may not go naked and be shamefully exposed.” (Rev. 16:15)

John used the phrase twice, both times quoting the Lord. In Rev. 3:3 He was criticizing the Church in Sardis, who in my opinion represents the mainline Protestants of today. He was reminding them that they’ve gotten away from His word and had better wake up and get back into it. Otherwise they won’t know when He will come to them. Notice the wording. In the Rapture He comes for us, not to us, and we meet Him in the air. The people He’s talking to will not go in the Rapture, and if they don’t wake up, even the 2nd Coming will take them by surprise. (In verse 4 we see that not everyone in Sardis is asleep. There are a few among them who will be ready for the Rapture and will walk with Him in robes of white.)

In Rev. 16:15 the world is well into the Great Tribulation, so the Lord’s warning is for Tribulation believers who will be responsible for keeping themselves saved during the most terrifying and dangerous time the world has ever known. When used symbolically, as it is here, clothing always stands for righteousness, and tribulation believers will be responsible for maintaining theirs.

Day and Hour

Now we’ll look at that other popular phrase, “No one knows the day or the hour”.

“No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.” (Matt. 24:36-37)

After the Great Tribulation ends (Matt. 24:29) there will be various signs in the heavens. The sun and moon will go dark and the stars will fall from the sky. Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear and all the nations will mourn. After that they’ll see Him coming in the clouds with power and great glory, having gathered His elect from all over Heaven to join Him (Matt. 24:30-31). This is confirmed in both  Rev. 18:14 and Rev. 19: 11-14. From both the context and the passage itself it’s clear that the Lord was referring to the day and hour of the 2nd Coming, when He’ll be coming with us not for us.

“Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.” (Matt. 24:42-44)

A few verses later, the Lord repeated the same thought, again in the context of the 2nd Coming.

The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. (Matt. 24:50-51)

And another few verses later. There’s no way this can refer to the Rapture because the things He described will not be done to unbelievers at the Rapture. He’s speaking of the judgments that follow the 2nd Coming.

“Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.” (Matt. 25:13)

For the fourth time in 28 verses the Lord has said that believers on Earth at the time of the 2nd Coming will not know the day or hour of His return. This one is in the context of the parable of the 10 bridesmaids.

In previous studies I’ve shown that this parable can’t be about the church. The Church is the Bride, not a bridesmaid, there’s only one bride, not 10, and the banquet follows the wedding, it doesn’t precede it. There’s no way a newly married bride can be excluded from her own wedding banquet by a husband who claims he doesn’t know her. The parable is about tribulation survivors, 5 of whom are saved and enter the Kingdom and 5 who are not and don’t.

What’s The Point?

Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day-and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing”. (2 Tim. 4:8)

I’ve searched the Scriptures in vain trying to find either phrase used in connection with the Rapture. But no where can I find a single verse prohibiting or even discouraging speculation about its timing.

On the contrary, I find that the Lord rebuked the religious leaders of His time for not expecting Him, and in doing so encouraged us to be aware as well. For example, commanded us to understand Daniel’s 70 weeks prophecy (Matt. 24:15), He criticized the Pharisees for not being able to read the signs of the times (Matt. 16:2-4), and had Jerusalem destroyed for not recognizing the clearly foretold time of His visitation (Luke 19:41-44). Paul warned us not to let events leading up to the Day of the Lord take us by surprise (1 Thes. 5:4), and as we see above promised that the Lord would award a crown to those who longed for His appearing. How many more reasons do we need?

So where did this idea come from? It appears that some of it can be blamed on theologians who misinterpreted the 2nd Coming parables in Matt. 24 & 25. Apparently they didn’t realize that when the Lord coined the phrase, “No one knows the day or hour” He was talking about His 2nd Coming, not the Rapture. But even then it’s the disobedient who are caught by surprise in these parables, not the faithful.

Some of it is also due to the fact that for generations church leaders have actively discouraged the study of prophecy for fear that focusing on the Lord’s return would make members less enthusiastic about funding their buildings and other Earth centered programs. They developed interpretations that allegorized it all away, making it seem like a fairy tale that no body really believes. I remember when I began to take Bible prophecy seriously my pastors warned me, “Don’t become so heavenly minded that you’re no earthly good.” These are the scoffers Peter warned about, who say, “Where’s the Coming He promised?” (2 Peter 3:4)

But there’s still more. Even among pre-trib believers, there is a fear of the rapture because of false doctrines they’ve been exposed to. The “partial rapture” hypothesis holds that only the truly worthy will be taken, while the rest of the Church will be left behind to clean up their act during some or all of the End times judgments. Others say believers who are not also “overcomers” will be cast into the Outer Darkness at the rapture and excluded from the Millennium. These opinions erode our assurance by concluding that we won’t know if we’re good enough until it’s too late, and make us fearful that we won’t qualify.

Then there are the “secular Christians” who don’t want their so-called good life to end before they’ve had a chance to experience it all. Yes, they want the Lord to come, but not yet, not now.

And finally there are those who know that if the Lord came for us today, members of their family and circle of friends would be left behind. They don’t want the Lord to come until they know everyone they love will be taken too.

For all these reasons and more, being faced with the idea that the Rapture could be very close is not a comforting idea for lots of believers. Suggesting time frames makes it all seem too real, so they don’t like it. When they say, “No one knows the day or hour,” they mean, “I don’t want to hear about it.”

Be Quiet. You’ll Scare Them Away.

Well intended people incorrectly say that talking about the End Times confuses believers, so we shouldn’t do it. What if we get them all excited and then it doesn’t happen? they ask. It’s no secret that the church is populated by a lot of folks who have zeal without knowledge and are easily taken in by anything that promises to either make their life easier (prosperity gospel) or help them escape it altogether (rapture mania). When I came to the Lord in the mid 1980’s a book titled 88 Reasons Why The Rapture will take place in 1988 triggered some rapture mania. A year ago the so called “Blood Moon Scenario” had folks looking for the rapture during the fall feasts. And there have been several others in between. In every case a couple of hours of study proved the theories false.

Paul called the Bereans noble because they searched the Scriptures daily to verify what he taught them (Acts 17:11) And that’s the Biblically correct response to these claims. It’s not to take other verses out of context in an effort to silence them. That only introduces another false teaching. And worse, it encourages the Church to go back to sleep.

When we hear someone suggest or even insist on this time or that one, our response should not be to automatically condemn the person for “date-setting”. It should be to “search the Scriptures daily to see if those things be true” before making a decision about it.

Personally I would much rather see the Church engaged in a lively discussion about the nearness of end times events than to see us trot out the old “No one knows the day or hour” line while sticking our heads back in the sand. What subject is a more important topic for discussion today? And think of all the extra crowns the Lord would have to order. Besides, people don’t fall away when dates come and go because if they’re saved they can’t fall away. If they fall away they weren’t saved to begin with. The Lord doesn’t miss opportunities to save people because of mistakes men make. He knew those who are His before He laid the Earth’s foundations, and promised not to lose even one of us.

So come on Church. Let’s get back to our job. The Bible warns us that there’ll be false teachers and says they’ll be held accountable. But it also admonishes us to do our homework so we’ll know one when we see one. Selah 09-05-09

This is an update of an article originally published in March 2004.  While it’s based on the Bible, it also includes Jewish wedding traditions from Biblical times.  Some of these traditions go all the way back to Abraham’s time and are described in Genesis 24.

Birth of a Tradition

Abraham was getting old and Sarah had died, so he sent his chief servant to the land of his brother to get a wife for Isaac. The servant loaded up 10 camels with gifts and set off. After some time he arrived in the village of Abraham’s brother Nahor. Approaching a young woman near a well, he asked for a drink, in accordance with a plan he had devised with the Lord.  When she offered to draw water for his camels as well, he recognized the confirming sign he had asked for and accompanied her to her home.

That evening he asked her family for permission to take the young woman, whose name was Rebekah, back home to be the bride of his master’s son Isaac. Using the gifts to reward her and compensate the family for the loss of their daughter, he said he wanted to leave immediately. When Rebekah’s father turned to her for final approval, she agreed and they set off the next morning. After several days travel during which the servant told her all about her betrothed, they arrived at Isaac’s home where she met him for the first time.  That very evening Isaac and Rebekah were married.

That’s The Way It Goes

Members of royalty often followed a procedure very similar to this in obtaining brides for their sons, sometimes arranging them years in advance of the actual event. Common people also adopted this method, but of course with them the prospective groom acted on his own behalf rather than sending someone in his stead.

Even today in some Middle Eastern cultures arranged marriages are common, with the groom’s mother selecting a bride for her son. The logic here is that a young man’s mother knows her son and his temperament better than anyone and can most accurately predict what kind of woman would please him. On one of our trips to Israel and Jordan, our Jordanian guide told us that his marriage had been arranged in this way and he was very happy with his mother’s selection.

Back To Biblical Times

In those days when a man took a liking to a young woman, he approached her father to ask for her hand in marriage.  Due to the prevailing economic conditions back then,  it took a long time for a man to become financially stable enough to think about starting a family.  When he did, he looked for a bride young enough to bear him many children.  So while the man in these cases could be in his thirties, the potential bride would often still be a teenager and would need her father’s permission to marry.

Inviting the man into their home, the young woman’s parents sat down with him around a table while she brought wine and four cups. After she had poured each of them (but not herself) a cup of wine, she listened while this man, who she was meeting for the very first time, described his assets, skills and other qualities that made him a desirable mate. A brief negotiation followed where the price he would have to pay as compensation for the family’s loss of their daughter was determined. It was called the bride price.

If the two men reached an agreeable amount all eyes turned to the daughter who had been listening intently to the entire discussion. She now had to decide if she would take this man to be her husband. If she turned her empty cup upside down, the man went away never to return. But if she filled her cup and took a sip of the wine, she was agreeing to become his wife.

At that point they signed a betrothal agreement, wherein the man promised on oath to return for the young woman when all the wedding preparations were complete. Now they were officially engaged and the relationship could only be terminated by a divorce.  He went away to build a home for them on family property next to his father’s house. This could take some time, and the couple rarely met again until the father of the groom pronounced the newly built home fit for habitation.  Only then was the wedding date set, and the man given permission by his father to go collect his bride for the wedding.

During this time the young woman was to watch and wait at her parents’ home. She and her bridesmaids had to maintain a constant state of preparedness, since the wedding date would not be revealed to her until the bridegroom actually appeared at her door to take her to their new home.

Surprise, Surprise

For his part, the groom would try to show up unexpectedly to surprise her, carrying her off suddenly “like a thief in the night” when no one would see them. The only advance warning she would get was the sound of his voice shouting her name and the blast of a ram’s horn.

When the bridesmaids discovered that the bride had been “spirited away” they would organize a great torch-lit procession, going throughout the whole town announcing that the wedding banquet was soon to begin. The banquet typically capped off a seven-day celebration during which the bride and groom were hidden away in their private rooms while the whole town made merry. Then they reappeared at the banquet to receive the congratulations of their friends and family, and their married life officially began.  The father of the groom picked up the tab for all the festivities.

Maybe you’re beginning to see the similarities. The Lord Jesus, being royalty, does not come directly seeking His bride. His Father sends an unnamed servant on His behalf, just like Abraham did. This servant of course is the Holy Spirit, our Comforter, Who beckons us.  Interestingly, the name of Abraham’s servant was Eliezer, which translates “God is my Comforter.” And even more so, in Genesis 24 Eliezer’s name is never mentioned, as if he’s serving as a model of the Holy Spirit, Whose name is also withheld from us.

The role of the Holy Spirit is to extol the virtues of the Son of God, Who when told that the Bride price was nothing less than His own shed blood, agreed to die for us, and for the joy set before Him endured the cross. (Hebr. 12:2).  His last word from the cross, recorded in John 19:30, was tetelesti, a Greek word that’s been translated “It is finished.”  In the Lord’s time it was a legal term that literally meant, “Paid in full”,  It was written across paid invoices and prison documents upon release of prisoners who had served their full terms, and had therefore paid their debt to society. With His death Jesus paid the price in full for His bride.

Who Loves You?

At the Last Supper Jesus had hoisted His cup and said,  “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.” (1 Cor. 11:25).  When we first “take the cup” we’re signifying that we’re officially betrothed,  and we’re rewarded with gifts from the Holy Spirit, Who is sealed within us as a guarantee of our inheritance (Ephe. 1:13-14). We then begin our journey, the balance of our life on Earth, while the Holy Spirit continues to teach us about our betrothed and helps us develop  behavioral standards that are pleasing to Him.

As He does, we learn to our utter amazement that we have always been our Lord’s consuming desire,

That He lived so that we might come into existence and be set apart,

That He has longed for us to know how much He loves us,

That His every word and action were designed to bring us honor and express His devotion to us,

That He has dedicated Himself to us and covered all of our imperfections with His love, and

That He gave His life for us.

For His part the Lord is even now building a house for us. “You trust in God; trust also in me,“ He said. In My Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me so that you also may be where I am.” (John 14:1-3) He has sworn on oath to return for us when the wedding preparations are complete and take us to His Father’s house, to the place He’s been preparing for us.

Soon And Very Soon

One day when we least expect it, He’ll come like a thief in the night and spirit us away to our new home.  For the Lord Himself will come down from Heaven with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so will we be with the Lord forever. (1 Thes. 4:16-17).

In Heaven  the King and His Bride will be hidden away in our rooms, while on Earth the last seven years of human history unfold. (Isa. 26:19-20) At the end, following the Marriage Supper of the Lamb (Rev. 19:7-9), we’ll return to Earth together to rule and reign for 1000 years, and then it’s off to our eternal life with Him.  Praise the Lord.  Selah 08-22-09

Jesus was traveling through Jericho on His way to Jerusalem.  It was early in the day on Palm Sunday.    A rumor had sprung up among the crowds following Him that when He got there He was going to establish His Kingdom and defeat all their enemies.  He told them this parable as a way of clarifying how things would happen.

By the way, you’ll notice some scholars saying that this is just another version of the Parable of the Talents.  But while the two stories are generally similar there are too many material differences to make them two versions of the same event.  Let’s read it.

He said: “A man of noble birth went to a distant country to have himself appointed king and then to return. So he called ten of his servants and gave them ten minas. ‘Put this money to work,’ he said, ‘until I come back.’ (Luke 19:12-13)

As will become clear the man of noble birth represents Jesus who after His resurrection went to Heaven  to be made King of the whole Earth.  And the servants represent His followers.  In the monetary system of the day, a drachma was about one day’s wage.  It took 100 drachmas to equal one mina, and 60 minas to equal 1 talent. Note that each servant was given an equal amount (one mina), a much smaller sum than even the least of the three servants in the Parable of the Talents.  And remember, a parable is a heavenly truth put into an earthly context, so everything is symbolic of something else. Therefore, the mina represents something as valuable to the Lord as about 3 months wages would be to us.

When we reviewed the Parable of the Talents we saw that the money there represented His Word, the Lord’s most prized possession.  Psalm 138:2 says He values His word even above His name.  It’s reasonable to assume it’s the same here, especially since history tells us that the one thing the Lord left His followers with was the Gospel, His Word.

According to E.W. Bullinger’s “Number In Scripture” the number 10 denotes a completeness of order.  It implies that nothing is wanting; that the number and order are perfect; that the whole cycle is complete. The 10 servants and 10 minas indicate that before the Lord left He gave everyone necessary everything they needed to spread His Word through out the world.

“But his subjects hated him and sent a delegation after him to say, ‘We don’t want this man to be our king.’ (Luke 19:14)

Here’s another difference between the two parables.  No such impression is conveyed in the Parable of the Talents.  There the man was simply going on a journey.  Here he’s going off to be made King and some people don’t like it.  30 years previously a similar event had actually taken place.  When Herod Archelaus went to Rome to be made King as his father’s successor, a delegation of 50 Jews followed him from Israel where they petitioned Caesar to give them a Roman governor instead of Archelaus.  According to Josephus over 8,000 Jews who lived in Rome gathered in the palace to support them as they presented their case against Archelaus.

Needless to say Archelaus was not pleased, and after he was appointed in spite of their pleas he made his displeasure known to his subjects.  It may be that Jesus used  the incident to remind them (and us) of the dangers in rejecting a duly appointed King. If so, the warning fell mostly on deaf ears.  A short time later Israel rejected its King and since then untold millions of Gentiles have done the same thing.

“He was made king, however, and returned home. Then he sent for the servants to whom he had given the money, in order to find out what they had gained with it. (Luke 19:15)

There was never any doubt that Jesus would be our King.  With His blood He redeemed the entire creation from its bondage to decay (Romans 8:21) and since then all that remains is for Him to take possession of that which He has purchased. That day is coming soon, and when it does there will be loud voices in Heaven saying:

“The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign for ever and ever.” (Rev. 11:15)

Two verses later, in Rev. 11:17, God is described as “the one who is and who was.”  No more “and who is to come.”  From Heaven’s perspective, His reign will have already begun even though on Earth the Great Tribulation is still to come.  Satan and his followers may see the Great Tribulation as a war to determine who will control Earth, but the Lord sees it as a judgment where Israel will be purified and the nations will be completely destroyed. (Jeremiah 30:8-11)   Satan is merely being used to help Him accomplish this. (Rev. 17:17)  There’s never been any doubt as to the outcome.

When He returns, The LORD will be king over the whole earth. On that day there will be one LORD, and his name the only name. (Zechariah 14:9)

Since the King will have already returned at this point in the parable, we’re talking about the time after the 2nd Coming.  Also we’ll soon see that the King’s servants and His subjects are two different groups.  The first order of business is to receive a report from the servants.  How have they invested His most precious commodity?

“The first one came and said, ‘Sir, your mina has earned ten more.’

” ‘Well done, my good servant!’ his master replied. ‘Because you have been trustworthy in a very small matter, take charge of ten cities.’

“The second came and said, ‘Sir, your mina has earned five more.’

“His master answered, ‘You take charge of five cities.’ (Luke 19:16-19)

Getting a 1000% or even a 500% return on a small investment is commendable.  But it’s unlikely to qualify someone to govern 5 or 10 cities.  Remember, this is a parable.  Everything is symbolic of something else.  The lesson here is that faithfulness in small matters will always bring disproportionate rewards where the Lord’s work is concerned. And even though the timing is the second coming, the lesson is universal.  For example, our willingness to share the Gospel with even one person could result in a thousand souls saved over time.

“Then another servant came and said, ‘Sir, here is your mina; I have kept it laid away in a piece of cloth. I was afraid of you, because you are a hard man. You take out what you did not put in and reap what you did not sow.’

“His master replied, ‘I will judge you by your own words, you wicked servant! You knew, did you, that I am a hard man, taking out what I did not put in, and reaping what I did not sow? Why then didn’t you put my money on deposit, so that when I came back, I could have collected it with interest?’ (Luke 19:20-23)

The King was not agreeing with the third servant’s assessment of his character.  Rather, he was saying, “If you think that’s the kind of person I am, reaping what I didn’t sow, then you should have made sure  that my money would at least earn me some interest.” The contradiction between his words and his actions was obvious and became the basis for the king’s judgment against him.

“Then he said to those standing by, ‘Take his mina away from him and give it to the one who has ten minas.’

” ‘Sir,’ they said, ‘he already has ten!’

“He replied, ‘I tell you that to everyone who has, more will be given, but as for the one who has nothing, even what he has will be taken away. But those enemies of mine who did not want me to be king over them—bring them here and kill them in front of me.” (Luke 19:20-26)

Just as each servant was given the same amount of money, we’ve all been given the same basic truth of the gospel and can say as Paul said,

For what I received I passed on to you 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. (1 Cor. 15:3-4)

Jesus died for our sins, and the proof that His death was sufficient to save us is found in the Resurrection.  The Old Testament foretold this, and the New Testament confirms it.  It’s the Gospel in its simplest form.  The more we share it with others the more we’ll gain. In addition to saving another soul, teaching someone else the Gospel results in a deeper understanding for us.

By his own admission, the third servant proved he didn’t know his master.  His perception of the man was all wrong, and while he called himself a servant, he  didn’t do even the minimum that was asked of Him. He represents the “in name only” Christian who really has nothing, and will be surprised to find even that being taken away.

After the Lord comes back He’ll conduct a series of judgments where those who have survived the Great Tribulation will have to give account for themselves.  At issue will be whether they’ve shown that they want Him as their King or not.  Those who have will be welcomed into the Kingdom. Those who haven’t will be banished to the place prepared for the devil and his angels. (Matt. 25:41)

By this parable the Lord was showing that He wouldn’t be setting up His Kingdom in the way the people expected, but would be leaving soon to be made King.  When He returns He’ll reward His followers, punish His enemies, and then He’ll establish His Kingdom.  Selah 08-08-09

“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” (Matt. 7:13-14)

This passage is often quoted in reference to the different roads traveled by unbelievers as opposed to believers.  Unbelievers are said to be on a broad road with many fellow travelers, all on the way to their destruction.  Believers on the other hand are a small segment of humanity and are on a narrow road to salvation.  This difference is further defined by some as pertaining to our behavior.  The unbeliever’s gate is wide and his road is broad, supposedly indicating that there’s room for all kinds of sinful behavior, while for the believer it’s a small gate and a narrow road suggesting that there’s very little latitude for misbehaving.  A careless step or two and you may find yourself being rerouted onto the broad road.

If you look at these 2 verses alone it’s easy to understand why so many see them this way.  But in the context of the chapter a different picture emerges.

In Matthew 7 the people in focus all claim to be believers, and the emphasis is on their fruit.  The Lord began by admonishing us against judging others,

“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” (Matt. 7:1-2)

Verses 3-5 have to do with judgment within the community of believers.

“Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.”

We’re all sinners and hypocrites who have a tendency to pounce all over even the “minor” sins of others while ignoring our own massive list of transgressions.  Why is it that those who test the Lord’s patience to the max are often the most acrimonious in their accusations of others?

You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge the other, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things. Now we know that God’s judgment against those who do such things is based on truth. So when you, a mere man, pass judgment on them and yet do the same things, do you think you will escape God’s judgment? (Romans 2:1-3)

Intolerant, judgmental believers are convinced they’re defending the faith and that they’ll receive the commendation due them from the Lord. But these verses indicate quite the opposite.

As much as we ignore the warnings in verses 3-5,  our disregard for verse 6 is even more glaring.  It has to do with our attitude toward unbelievers.

“Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and then turn and tear you to pieces.”

Expecting the unbelieving world to conform to our moral standards is ridiculous. And yet to the world the church is known primarily for its holier-than-thou hypocrisy in doing just that.  Like the Pharisees of old we demand that others live up to behavioral standards we ourselves don’t keep.  For example studies show that our divorce and abortion rates are no different from theirs.  And it’s a known fact that we indulge in more than our share of adultery, theft, gluttony, avarice, greed, and so on, as well.

It’s like we have forgotten all about the Lord’s advice that the best way to convert the world is for the Church to become what it was meant to be, an agent of His love (John 13:34-35).  Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness leads you toward repentance? (Romans 2:4) It’s God’s kindness and mercy that bring people to Him, not threats of condemnation.

Some think it’s persecution when unbelievers pass laws that contradict our beliefs and restrict our freedoms while promoting the freedom of others.  But maybe it’s just them turning on us for the way we’ve pushed our beliefs on them, like the Lord said they would.

In Matt. 7:7-12 the way to salvation is explained to us. It’s summarized in verse 8.  For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. It doesn’t matter who you are or what you’ve done.  If you ask for it, you’ll receive it. It’s this message of hope that’s needed for our time, not judgment and condemnation.

I don’t think it’s an accident that in verse 10 the Lord asked, “Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake?” The comparison of bread with a stone takes us back to the Wilderness Temptation when Satan challenged Him to turn stones into bread.  He replied, “Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.” (Matt. 4:4) God’s Word is life, and Jesus is the bread of life (John 6:35).  Stones are dead. If we ask for life will the Lord give us death instead?

But the comparison of a fish to a serpent symbolizes the central thought of the entire chapter.   The fish  stands for Jesus and became the symbol of His followers.  The serpent stands for Satan.  Jesus called the leaders of His day’s organized religion children of the devil (John 8:44),  who with their insistence on a mindless obedience to their laws (Isaiah 29:13) rather than faith in a coming Redeemer, made their converts twice the sons of hell as they were (Matt. 23:15). They had turned God’s love into a tool of the devil, and sadly there are many in the church still doing the same thing today.

So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.(Matt 7:12)  The phrase Law and Prophets was a Jewish idiom for their Scriptures, the Old Testament. While we think of the Golden Rule as a New Testament idea, Jesus said it summarized the Old Testament as well.  If you don’t want to be judged, don’t judge.  If you don’t want to be condemned, don’t condemn. If you want mercy, be merciful. If you want to be forgiven, forgive.  If you want to receive, give. (Luke 6:36-38)

There’s a reason why verses 13-14 are in the middle of the chapter and not the beginning or the end.  Up till now we’ve been looking at misdirected believers who think they’re defending the faith but instead will find themselves defending fruitless lives at judgment time.  Now we’ll see examples of those who claim to be in the Church, but will actually be left behind when the Rapture comes.

Matt. 7:15-23 warns us against following false prophets, saying, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’ (Matt. 7:22-23)

Appearing to perform miracles in the Lord’s name does not make someone His follower, so we shouldn’t blindly accept them as such, but should inspect their doctrine.  Remember Satan will appear to perform miracles and will deceive many.  (2 Thes. 2:9-10)  Only those who do His father’s will can claim the Son, regardless of what else they say or do.  And what is the father’s will? Here’s the Lord’s answer.   “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)

Nowhere is the Father’s will as it regards our salvation stated more clearly.   Anyone who adds any requirement or qualification to this declaration (or takes anything from it) is a false prophet even if they perform miracles in the Lord’s name.

“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.

But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.” (Matt. 7:24-27)

Here is the Lord’s summary statement complete with one final comparison, this one aimed at the liberals.  In Matt. 16: 16-18 Jesus called Peter’s confession that He was the Christ (Messiah), the Son of the Living God, the rock on which He would build the Church.  Paul wrote that the rock Moses struck to provide water for the Israelites represented Christ. For they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ. (1 Cor. 10:4)   From ancient times, the priest would call God’s people to worship saying, “Come, let us sing for joy to the LORD; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation.” (Psalm 95:1)  And today we sing, “On Christ the solid Rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand.”

A doctrine of salvation that’s built upon anything other than the personal relationship with Jesus that comes from being born again rests precariously on sinking sand. (John 3:3)  He alone is the foundation of our faith, and unless our salvation is built exclusively upon this Rock, it will be of no avail to us when we stand before Him on that Day.

From the context of the chapter, we can see that the Lord’s topic was salvation.  We don’t deserve ours so we shouldn’t judge others when it looks to us like they don’t deserve theirs.  We have no right to think of ourselves as being better than unbelievers, so we shouldn’t try to impose our values on them.    We received our salvation simply because we asked for it in faith.  There was no merit or worthiness involved, nothing to commend us.  But we should be very wary of those who would propose alternatives to salvation by grace through faith alone, whether by adding to or subtracting from it, even if they perform miracles.

Now let’s go back to verses 13-14.   Each of the two roads is thought by its travelers to be the way to salvation.  But the name engraved above the wide gate is Works and multitudes who call themselves Christians are striving to get there. They run the gamut from extreme legalism to extreme liberalism, but have in common a belief that it’s their behavior that saves them.

The legalist proudly proclaims, “Jesus may have begun my salvation, but I finished it.  I have kept the commandments and no longer sin. I have earned the right to call others to account for their behavior.  How else will they learn?”

The false prophet says, “I’m a miracle worker, just like the Lord was. Who can doubt that I’m His.”

The artificially modest liberal says “I’m a good person and I’ve tried to live a good life. There are many roads to salvation and as long as we’re sincere in what we believe, the Lord will understand and accept us.”

None of them realizes the road he’s on leads to destruction.

But at the end of the narrow road stands a small gate on which the word Faith is inscribed.  As we come alongside the few travelers on this road we can hear them softly singing,

“Just as I am, without one plea,
but that thy blood was shed for me,
and that thou bidst me come to thee,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.”

This is the road to Life.

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. (Ephesians 2:8-9)  Selah.  07-18-09

On one occasion an expert in the Law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” “What is written in the Law,” Jesus replied, “How do you read it?” He answered: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind [Deut. 6:5] and love your neighbor as yourself [Lev 19:18].” “You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied, “Do this and you will live.” But he wanted to justify himself and so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” (Luke 10:25-29).

In reply to this question, Jesus told the parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:30-37) the obvious point of which is that our neighbor is anyone in need of our assistance. We all learned this point of the story as children.  But parables are heavenly stories put into an earthly context where every character is symbolic of someone or something else, and the Parable of the Good Samaritan is no exception. Therefore we should also expect to find a glimpse of Heaven contained there in.   The word parable literally means “to place along side” so the obvious “earthly” story has to be accompanied by a hidden “heavenly” one.   Put another way, if the obvious story is the children’s version then the hidden one is the adult version of the story.   Let’s find it.

Who Are The Samaritans?

First, a little background.  The Samaritans were the offspring of marriages between Jewish farmers  the Assyrians left behind when they conquered the Northern Kingdom in 721 BC and the pagans they re-located there.  Mixing up the conquered populations was standard procedure for the Assyrians  because it reduced the threat of organized rebellion.   The Samaritans were despised by the Jews because of these mixed marriages and because they had incorporated pagan rituals into their worship of God (both were forbidden by Jewish law.)  A generation or so before the time of Jesus, a son of the Jewish High Priest had run off and married the daughter of the King of Samaria, built a replica of the Temple on Mt. Gerizim and instituted a rival worship system which caused a huge scandal.  In her encounter with Jesus (John 4:4-42) the Samaritan “woman at the well” makes reference to this (vs. 19).

The region called Samaria was named after the capital city of the former Northern Kingdom and is located in what’s known today as the West Bank. Because their laws prohibit marrying outside their own, the Samaritan population has dwindled to a point where only about 700 exist today. They’re not Palestinians, but they’re not regarded as Jews either and keep pretty much to themselves. Some have equated the Jews’ treatment of Samaritans during the time of Jesus with the southern whites’ treatment of blacks in the 19th century in the US, so to have a Samaritan as the hero of this story must have gotten the attention of the Lord’s audience right away. By the way, the ruins of the Samaritan Temple were discovered about 10 years ago and are being excavated for public display.

The old Jericho Road was a steep narrow passage along one wall of a deep canyon.  In the 17 miles from Jerusalem to Jericho, it dropped 3200 vertical feet through a rough wilderness area fraught with danger from attacks by wild animals in the best of times.  In the Lord’s day there was also the threat of being attacked by robbers lurking in the rocks.  The Temple renovation was nearly complete and many workers had been laid off.  Having lost their source of income, some turned to stealing to provide for their families.  The people were all too familiar with reports of violence there, and had nicknamed this road Adumim, the Pass of Blood.  The area where the canyon opens up at the bottom, near Jericho, is traditionally known as the valley of the Shadow of Death, from Psalm 23.

And Now, Back To Our Story

You know how the story goes. A man traveling along the old Jericho Road is beset by robbers who strip him of his clothes, beat him and leave him half dead. First a priest and then a Levite pass by, but simply cross to the other side and ignore him. Then a Samaritan comes along. He comes to where the man is, binds up his wounds applying oil and wine, and places him upon his own donkey. He takes the man to a nearby inn and cares for him. The next day he pays the man’s present and future bill asking the innkeeper to look after him and promising to pay any balance due when he returns. The two silver coins he gave the innkeeper would have paid a man’s hotel bill for up to 2 months in those days.

So, understanding that there’s supposed to be a glimpse of Heaven here and that everyone in the parable is symbolic of someone else let’s look for the hidden meaning.

“A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead.”(Luke 10:30)

The man was an ordinary person who represents you and me on the road of life.  Who it is that would attack us, strip us of our clothing and leave us for dead? We know that our spiritual covering is often referred to in terms of clothing. “All our righteous works are as filthy rags,” says Isaiah 64:6 whereas the Lord clothes us with “garments of salvation” and “robes of righteousness” (Isa. 61:10).  So who would strip us of our covering of righteousness and leave us spiritually dead? Only Satan, the stealer of our soul.

A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. (Luke 10:31-32)

The priest and the Levite represent organized religion that in and of itself is powerless to restore spiritual life and leaves us just as dead as when it found us. The Lord had Isaiah say, “These people come near to me with their mouth  and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is made up only of rules taught by men.” (Isaiah 29:13) Jesus didn’t come to start another religion.  He came so that God could be reconciled to His creation, to restore peace between the two.  But sadly, in some parts of the Church, the rules of men still carry more weight than the Word of God.

But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. (Luke 10:33)

And that leaves the Good Samaritan. Though despised and rejected by His countrymen, He comes to where we are after we’ve been attacked and beaten by our enemy, stripped of all our righteousness and left hopelessly dead in our sins, beyond the ability of all our religious works to restore us to God’s favor.

He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, took him to an inn and took care of him. (Luke 10:34)

He binds up our wounds (Isaiah 61:1), pours on oil and wine, and carries us to a place of spiritual comfort where He personally cares for us. Oil was used to aid in healing because of its  soothing and relaxing properties.  Applying it to the skin brings comfort. It represents the Holy Spirit, our Comforter.   Wine was an antiseptic, a cleansing agent.  It symbolizes His blood, shed for the remission of sin.  At the moment of salvation we receive the Holy Spirit as a guarantee of our inheritance and are washed clean in the  Blood of the Lamb.   He has taken up our infirmities and carried our sorrows (Isaiah 53:4) and will bring us to a place of comfort.   In Matt. 11:28 He said, “Come to me, you who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’ (Luke 10:35)

Before He left this earth He paid the debt of sin we owe to God (represented by the innkeeper), entrusting us to His care.  Silver was the coin of redemption (Exod. 30:12-15) .  Please notice that He also accepted responsibility for all of our future sins.  We weren’t just redeemed up to the time we became believers, but for all of our lives. (Col. 2:13-14)

So  the  Good Samaritan could only be the Lord Jesus,  our Savior and our Redeemer.

And what did the man do to deserve all of this? Nothing.  He neither earned his rescue nor provided any contribution to his restoration.   It was a gift, a manifestation of the grace in the Good Samaritan’s heart.   And so it is with us.  For when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. (Titus 3:4-7)

And now you know the adult version. 07-11-09