When C3 Exchange took down the cross from the top of their building, it sparked attention gaining national coverage.  Now there is the opportunity to put that cross back up on top of the same building, but this time, the building is going to be a place where God’s Word is preached.  This is such a marvelous story and I’m posting links to the video, the news media story, and Kristen’s own blog so you can read or watch it for yourself.  The news article will take 5 minutes to read, the video will take 20 minutes to watch, but it’s worth every minute.  This Good Friday something amazing will happen.  People all over the world will celebrate the death of the Savior of the world.  Something more minor will occur, but inextricably linked to it.  In Spring Lake, Michigan, 15 minutes from where I live, the cross, once taken down and rejected by a congregation, will be placed atop that same building for all to be seen.  Then on Resurrection Sunday, we celebrate victory of Life Himself over death.

Read the news article here.

Watch the video here.

Read Kristen’s blog here.

Praise God here (wherever you are.)

Have fun and stay busy – Luke 19:13

-The Orange Mailman

And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time.  For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work.  Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. 

And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming.  The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved.  Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.  ~ ESV

I was recently asked to clarify my views on the mystery of iniquity spoken of in II Thessalonians 2:7.  The following is a clarification of what I have previously written about here on my blog.  This is quite an expansion of what I had so for those who read about it before, there is quite a bit more here.

The mystery of iniquity in the context that Paul states it in II Thessalonians 2 has been occurring since the Noahic Covenant.  It was at that point in time that God decided to work through sinful men to restrain evil via governments.  Man is now allowed to require the life of another human being if they take a life, Genesis 9:5-6.  Also, as we are multiplying throughout the earth, we are required to separate into different ethnic entities, also known as nations.  The tower of Babel was a rebellion against this God ordained process, as nations are the vehicle through which man will restrain lawlessness.  Government is ordained by God to restrain evil according to Romans 13:1-7, I Timothy 2:1-4, I Peter 2:13-17.  In my opinion and I know that many disagree, this is the mystery of iniquity spoken of in II Thessalonians 2.  How does God work through sinful man to restrain sinfulness?  The idea of angelic forces backing governmental authorities is laid out in Daniel 10:13, 20-21, 11:1.  Daniel 11 maps out in advance the structure that the government would take before it even happened.  This is a combination of prophetic knowledge and predestination.  Angelic beings are confirming kings and standing with them at specific points in history in order to carry out God’s divine plan.

How this applies to the end times is unique since there will be only one end of this present age.  There will be an end times antichrist.  At this particular juncture angelic influence steps aside, ceases to restrain, thereby allowing an end times governmental structure to prevail.  It is a seven-headed, ten-horned beast according to Revelation 13.  This occurs immediately after Michael and his angels shove Satan out of heaven to the earth, see Revelation 12:7-12.  Government was originally intended by God to restrain evil, but this empire that will dominate the world will not do that having no holy angels backing it in the heavenly places.  In short, Michael the restrainer will have stopped restraining.  Once Michael stops restraining in the heavenlies, this end times antichrist and evil godless empire will be revealed.  Daniel 12:1 can also be cross referenced here as Michael stands up (or stands aside) thereby resulting in a time of trouble for the people of Israel.  The man of sin will sit in the temple proclaiming himself to be God.  Lying wonders and satanic power will accompany his reign, but it will be cut short by the return of Jesus Christ who will consume him with the Spirit of His mouth.  God will temporarily allow the saints to be overcome, but will cut this time short for the sake of His elect, Revelation 13:7, Matthew 24:21-22.  The mystery of lawlessness is already at work because there are many antichrists in the world at present, see I John 2:18.  But there is one final antichrist which is being held back by a restraining power.

When the seventh trumpet is sounded, the mystery will have been finished, see Revelation 10:7.  The mystery of how God works through sinful governments to restrain evil will be a thing of the past.  Now there will be a kingdom here on earth with Christ Himself as the head, see Revelation 11:15.  He will be a King of kings.  The kingdoms of this world will become the kingdoms of Christ, therefore there will be no more sinful governments in the way that this age operates, see Isaiah 9:6-7.  It will be the next step in God’s progressive covenantal plan.  The objects of accomplishment in Revelation 11:18 are in the aorist, which talks about complete actions without necessary reference to place in time.  These are things that have been completed, will be completed, or perhaps just “are complete” is the best way to put it.  The nations were angry, but His wrath has come which is the time for the dead to be judged.  The time is also come for rewards to be given and for those who destroy the earth to be destroyed themselves.  The wrath was already announced as impending at the sixth seal.  Then destruction came upon the earth during the trumpets.  This is the fire and brimstone type which was poured out upon Sodom and Gomorrah, see Luke 17:28-33.  The nations were judged during the trumpet sequence.  The earth, sea, and trees were destroyed during the first four trumpets, reformulating the present earth and heavens making way for the new heavens and new earth which will be present for the millennial reign of Christ, compare Revelation 8:6-13 with II Peter 3:4, 7, 10-13.  Mankind was specifically judged during trumpets 5 and 6 as a part of the three woes, see primarily Revelation 9.  Now the time has come at the sounding of the seventh trumpet for rewards to be given because the kingdoms of this world are become the kingdom of Christ.  We as the church will receive our rewards by taking places of authority within His kingdom rule here on earth, see Luke 19:11-27, Revelation 5:10, Revelation 20:4.

There is no evidence that a rapture of the church is occurring here at the seventh trumpet.  At the sixth seal, however, the church was seen having come out from the great tribulation, see Revelation 7:9-17.  The 144,000 were also sealed at that time, see Revelation 7:1-8, to endure the coming wrath of God being supernaturally protected from it, see Revelation 9:4.  So at the seventh trumpet, the church has already been raptured and entered the presence of God as He previously came out to pour out His wrath upon the earth, see also Isaiah 26:19-21.  Now here at the seventh trumpet, the millennial reign of Christ is beginning, therefore the church can begin reigning with Christ here on earth.  So rewards are being given here on earth at the Messiah’s judgment seat, also know as the judgment seat of Christ, see II Corinthians 5:10-11 and Romans 14:9-12 with Isaiah 45:22-25.  The beginning of the Messianic reign and the rewards being given to the church as they begin to reign with Him here on the earth is the focus of the seventh trumpet, not the rapture of the church.

This progression can also be seen in prophetic apocalypse in the psalms.  Psalm 92-99 is an apocalypse for the Sabbath.  It shows a general progression from the intent of God to deliver His people (Psalm 92-93), seeing His people in the midst of tribulation (Psalm 94), the repentance of Israel (Psalm 95), God’s believing remnant proclaiming His coming kingdom reign (Psalm 96), then the glorious coming of the Messiah (Psalm 97).  Psalm 98-99 is an alternate ending for the entire apocalypse and can be substituted for Psalm 96-97 which parallels it but expands upon it as well.  But let’s focus on Psalm 94 because this is where the truth of what will be occurring during the great tribulation (or time of Jacob’s trouble) can be see albeit in prophetic apocalypse.

The question is asked in Psalm 94:3, “How long shall the wicked triumph?”  It is stated that the wicked are breaking in pieces the people of God which is termed as His inheritance, see verse 5.  The promise is given in verse 14 that God will not cast off His people neither forsake His inheritance.  The question posed in verse 16 is answered in verses 17-19.  The plea for someone to rise up against this wickedness is answered that it is the LORD who is Our Helper.  The glorious appearing in 97:2-5 is the ultimate answer, but until that time it is the simple comfort of knowing God that brings peace to the soul.  Then in verse 20 we see the heart of the evil in this end times empire.  It has been at work throughout history at different places but now it is fully revealed.  The throne of iniquity cannot have fellowship with God.  This throne of iniquity is responsible for devising mischief by laws.  In essence, it will be legal to do evil and persecute the people of God.  God’s people will be framed as law breakers by the truly evil.  In verse 21 it is more fully explained.  The wicked who are in governmental authority having passed laws making it legal to kill God’s innocent people are gathering together against the lives of the righteous.  The context of Psalm 94 as a whole shows that God is temporarily allowing this for a period of time for His purposes.  What was in apocalyptic form in Psalm 94 is more fully explained in II Thessalonians 2.  The throne of iniquity spoken of in Psalm 94:20 will be the seat of power for the antichrist.  We see the seat of power for the beast in Revelation 16:10 described as his throne.  Later as Christ is revealed, we see Him delivering the souls of the saints out of the hands of the wicked, see Psalm 97:10.  We also see that the LORD will begin to reign in Zion and execute judgment and righteousness over all, see Psalm 99:1-4.

Thankfully, God has put a period at the end of the sentence.  Even though presently there is corruption in government, and even though it will get worse at the end of the age, it is only temporary.  God’s rule will eventually prevail and the mystery of iniquity will be a thing of the past.  Read about it in Psalm 92-99.

Have fun and stay busy – Luke 19:13

-The Orange Mailman

The people who walked in darkness
have seen a great light;
those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness,
on them has light shined.

Matthew 4:15-16  The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali,
the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles-
the people dwelling in darkness have seen a great light,
and for those dwelling in the region and shadow of death,
on them a light has dawned.

In the next chapter of A Tax Collector’s Guide to Fulfilled Prophecy, Matthew demonstrates that the more familiar one is with the prophecies and the history surrounding them, the more insight one can have into the subject of fulfilled prophecy.  Of course to know Jesus as the Savior-Messiah is essential.  Many scribes and Pharisees knew these same prophecies yet remained blinded to their fulfillment.  It is Matthew the tax collector who reveals the destiny that the Messiah had to minister and shine His light in the region of Galilee by quoting Isaiah 9:1-2 in Matthew 4:12-17.  In some ways this post will be a continuation of Was the Virgin Birth Expected? since both passages that Matthew quotes are drawn from the same section of Isaiah.

The Historical Background

Have you ever wondered how the three regions of Judea, Samaria, and Galilee came to be during the days of the ministry of Christ?  A quick look back at history will explain it.  Remember after the reign of Solomon that the kingdom of Israel experienced a split.  Ten tribes decided to separate from the reign of the Davidic king, see I Kings 11:30-36, 12:16-19.  Judah and Benjamin still followed the Davidic lineage and the rule from the capital city of Jerusalem, I Kings 12:17-21.  The ten northern tribes came to be known as Israel at first, see I Kings 15:25, 33, 16:8, 23 , but later after Omri established Samaria as the capital city, see I Kings 16:23-29, the northern kingdom became known as Samaria.  From the time of Omri onward, it was stated that the northern kings ruled over Israel in Samaria, meaning over the nation of Israel which was the northern ten tribes and from the capital city of Samaria.  When the fourth generation past Jehu had fulfilled the word of the LORD in the northern kingdom, II Kings 10:30, 15:12, the Assyrian Empire began to dominate the region.  We see this initially during the reign of Menahem in II Kings 15:19-20.  Later during the reign of Pekah the son of Remaliah, Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria comes against the northern most portion of Israel and takes possession.  If you read II Kings 15:29, this holds the key to understanding the region during the ministry of Christ known as Galilee.  This portion around the sea of Galilee was taken into captivity to Assyria before the rest of the northern kingdom was destroyed.  This should have been a warning for the remainder of the nation of Israel to repent, but they did not.

The next king after Pekah was Hoshea during which the rest of the northern kingdom [of Samaria] was destroyed.  Shalmaneser king of Assyria came against Israel and made it into a tributary or vassal, II Kings 17:3.  But Hoshea was conspiring with Egypt and the king of Assyria discovered this, II Kings 17:4.  So Shalmaneser destroyed the city of Samaria and carried many exiles captive from Israel, II Kings 17:5-6.  Then he set up an idolatrous system which was a combination of Babylonian idol worship mixed with some teachings from the LORD, see II Kings 17:24-34.  This was only in the portion that remained, not in northern Galilee.  Judah would be spared from the next king of Assyria’s invasion.  During the reign of good King Hezekiah, Sennacharib king of Assyria came against Judah but was turned back by the LORD because of the repentance of Israel, see II Kings 18:13, 19:32-37.  Later during the rise of the Babylonian Empire, Judah would finally be carried away into captivity by Nebuchadnezzar.  70 years later, the exiles were allowed to return.  But what are they returning to?  In Judah, they were allowed to return and rebuild Jerusalem.  But just north of that in Samaria, there was still a false system of worship in place originally set up by the Assyrian regime.  The Samaritans were also intermarried to the point that some Israelites did not consider them to be part of the nation of Israel anymore, hence the distinction between Jews and Samaritans.  Notice how Jesus referred to a Samaritan as a foreigner in Luke 17:15-18.  But even further north in the region of Galilee, there was no false system of worship in place, and these Galileans had not intermarried.  So this northernmost portion which was carried away separately from Samaria is the region which Isaiah is prophesying about in Isaiah 9:1-2.

A brief word about Gilead should be mentioned as well, since it is also mentioned in II Kings 15:29.  Gilead was the portion east of the Jordan River which was given to the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and half of the tribe of Manasseh before the nation of Israel conquered the rest of the promised land, see Deuteronomy 3:12-17.  This portion of land also went into captivity at the same time as Galilee in the north.  When Isaiah gives his prophecy, instead of using the term “Gilead”, he uses the term “beyond Jordan”.  In Matthew’s documentation of this fulfilled prophecy he also uses the term “beyond Jordan”.  As a preview, what Isaiah is saying is that the very region that went into captivity first and experienced such darkness and devastation is the very region that will experience the light of the Messiah.  Now let’s look at the context of Isaiah’s prophecy.

The context of Isaiah 9:1-2

Isaiah was preaching (prophesying) to the people of Judah that they might repent.  The alliance between Israel and Syria was the danger, but God was revealing that the Messiah would be born and would reign.  Sometimes in this prophecy it looks like the Messiah will be born and reign just as the alliance (the confederacy) was broken apart, but this is not the case.  This is the way prophecy works.  Sometimes portions of prophecy are fulfilled in the near context, within the lifetime of the prophet to justify their predictions, and portions are left to be fulfilled at a later point in time or in a far context.  Since the prophet was justified having a good portion of their prophecies come true within their lifetime, the people could be assured that the rest would come to pass as literally as the other portions.  Within the context of both kings in this alliance being judged, there is the prophecy that a virgin would conceive, Isaiah 7:14.  Later, Isaiah has a son by a young woman and they name the son a long name which means – Speed the Spoil, Hasten the Prey.  The name signified the quick means by which Samaria and Syria would become the spoil and prey of the Assyrian Empire.  But layered within this prophecy is found the word Immanuel or God With Us in some form, see Isaiah 8:8, 10.  This points back to the child which would be born of a virgin which would be called Immanuel.

In Isaiah 8:11-12, the reason is revealed that God is giving the prophecy and the deliverance.  The people of Judah should not be in fear of an alliance between Israel and Syria, they should be in fear of the LORD.  “But the LORD of hosts, Him you shall honor as holy.  Let Him be your fear, and let Him be your dread.”  The language which follows in Isaiah 11:14 is quoted or paraphrased in Luke 20:17-18, Romans 9:32-33, I Peter 2:4-8 combined with Isaiah 28:16 and Psalm 118:22.  This Rock of offense is going to cause both houses of Israel (Judah and Samaria) to stumble, fall, and be broken.  So we have the near context of Isaiah preaching to the people of Judah to let God be the One that they fear and not a confederacy between these two nations.  Then we have the far context of Isaiah preaching that this Rock of offense will cause both Judah and Samaria to stumble.  Yet in the midst of this, the testimony and the law will be sealed among the true disciples, those that wait upon the LORD, see Isaiah 8:16-17.  As this occurs, this Messianic figure (the Rock of offense, the child born of a virgin, Immanuel) and the children (the disciples that wait upon the LORD) will both be for signs and wonders in Israel.  The Messiah and His disciples will perform signs and wonders and will serve as signs and wonders to the nation of Israel, see Isaiah 8:18 with Hebrews 2:13.

When we arrive at Isaiah 9:1-2, we have the background of the Messiah and His disciples performing signs and wonders from Isaiah 8:18.  The darkness here mentioned that occurred as Galilee went into captivity is offset by the future light that will shine in that very area.  Remember, as Isaiah spoke the prophecy of Isaiah 7-12, the kingdom of Judah was still intact, and the northern kingdom of Samaria was still intact, but the portions around the region of the sea of Galilee and the region of Gilead had gone into captivity.  So the only portion which had experienced great darkness at this point was literally around the sea of Galilee and beyond Jordan.  Since it now belonged to the Gentiles, Isaiah terms the region Galilee of the Gentiles, or Gentile nations.  It is on these people living around the sea of Galilee that the light of the Messiah will shine with He and His disciples performing signs and wonders.  The qualifier in Isaiah 8:20 should be read as well, showing that they will speak in accordance with the law and the testimony, meaning according to the Word of God revealed unto that point, the law of Moses and true prophets of God.

Isaiah 9:6-7 continues the vein of prophecy concerning the Messiah.  The Child is born, the Son is given.  He has wonderful names ascribed to Him along with inheriting the throne of David.  Up to this point, there was still someone sitting on the throne of David (wicked King Ahaz) and this prophecy is directed toward the household of David, see Isaiah 7:13.  The literal fulfillment of this prophecy would include the Messiah ruling over the nation of Israel from Jerusalem.  Of course this will be preceded by a time of ministry during which the Messiah will minister in the area of Galilee.

How Does Prophecy Work?

This is the question that this series is trying to tackle.  In what way did Isaiah set forth his original prophecy?  In what way was it fulfilled?  Are there still future aspects to this prophecy yet to be fulfilled?  Isaiah set forth his original prophecy in such a way that it was difficult to discern what would happen in his lifetime and what would occur in the distant future.  However, as the prophecies concerning the immediate nations were fulfilled and the prophecies concerning the Messiah remained unfulfilled, it became quite clear that there were unfulfilled portions in this passage.  The Assyrians came through overflowing the region like a river overrunning all of its banks, yet the Messiah was not born.  The nations of Israel (northern kingdom) and Syria were brought to nothing, yet a virgin had not brought forth a Son.  Rezin and Pekah were dead and gone yet no miracles and signs had been performed in the area of Galilee.

Matthew the Tax Collector had the privilege of witnessing the miracles in the area of Galilee.  In fact, now Galilee was its own territory subservient to Rome with its own ruler, see Luke 3:1.  As Matthew witnessed the fulfillment of prophecy, he placed his finger squarely on Isaiah 9:1-2 and took a bold stance.  Jesus is the Messiah because He fulfilled this prophecy early on in His ministry.  The entire context of Matthew is set up to prove this very point.  Each detail is there for a reason.  Even the mention of Decapolis in Matthew 4:25 is there for the purpose of showing that the region beyond Jordan was being affected as well, just as Isaiah 9:1-2 had foretold.  If you look on a map comparing the Decapolis in the times of Jesus with a map of Israel just after it was settled, you will see that the Decapolis was exactly where Gilead had been.  The ministry of Jesus the Messiah fulfilled each detail of the prophecy.  Contrast the insight of Matthew to the blindness of the chief priests and Pharisees in John 7:45-52.  They believed that no prophet would ever minister in Galilee.  Matthew the Tax Collector put the religious authorities to shame with the insight that God gave him.

Since not every detail of Isaiah 9:6-7 has been fulfilled, we have certain prophecies in Isaiah that await a future fulfillment.  We discover another vein of prophecy which talks about the Messiah ruling, establishing justice here on earth, and the character of a kingdom which is reminiscent of Eden, see Isaiah 11 for details.  While some things in this section of Isaiah came to pass in Isaiah’s lifetime, and others came to pass during Matthew’s lifetime, it should not be out of the question that a third time frame will occur during which the Messiah will establish His kingdom here on the earth.  Instead of all prophecy coming to pass at the same time, we have different nexuses around which different aspects of the prophecies will be fulfilled.  Once we understand this, it becomes much more simple.  The defeat of Syria and the northern kingdom of Israel by the Assyrian Empire is one nexus.  The Messiah coming in such a way that the nation of Israel stumbles over Him is another nexus.  Around this nexus we see the virgin birth, a remnant of disciples, and miracles in the land of Galilee.  The final nexus is the Messiah reigning in power and glory.  Around this nexus we see the defeat of the wicked one, peace amongst animals, Gentile nations willingly seeking after the Messiah, and a final regathering of the nation of Israel, see Isaiah 11.

I think one reason that Matthew included this was the relationship that he had with Galilee.  As near as I can tell, Matthew 9:9 and Mark 2:13-14 place the calling of Matthew quite near the sea of Galilee.  Here was a common tax collector, not associated with any of the religious authorities in Jerusalem.  Along comes the Messiah ministering in Galilee and calls him to be one of the twelve.  The Messiah had to minister in Galilee according to the prophet Isaiah and it resulted in Matthew’s special relationship with Jesus Christ.  On the Galileans a light has dawned.  No wonder he makes a special note of it!

Have fun and stay busy – Luke 19:13

-The Orange Mailman

Each year I try to blog about a Christmas carol and how it may or may not convey the true facts about the Christmas story.  This year’s carol is a simple question.  And what a good question it is!  Let’s go back, though, to the origin of this Christmas carol since this was not its original title.  William Chatterton Dix was an English songwriter.  At age 29 he was struck with a near fatal illness which required several months of bed-rest for his recovery.  During this time he went into a state of depression but during that time also wrote several poems, one of which was titled The Manger Throne.  That seems to be an oxymoron because how could a manger be a throne?  Yet this oxymoron also served as a vehicle for one of the greatest Christmas carols of all time.  I will include the text of what most feel to be the accurate version of the original since it exists in differing forms; (mainly because most hymnals I have seen eliminate the latter portions of the second and third verses replacing them with the latter portion of the first verse making it something of a chorus).

What child is this, who, laid to rest,
On Mary’s lap is sleeping,
Whom angels greet with anthems sweet
While shepherds watch are keeping?
This, this is Christ the King,
Whom shepherds guard and angels sing;
Haste, haste to bring Him laud,
The babe, the son of Mary!

Why lies He in such mean estate
Where ox and ass are feeding?
Good Christian, fear: for sinners here
The silent Word is pleading.
Nails, spear shall pierce him through,
The Cross be borne for me, for you;
Hail, hail the Word Made Flesh,
The babe, the son of Mary!

So bring Him incense, gold, and myrrh;
Come, peasant, king, to own Him!
The King of Kings salvation brings;
Let loving hearts enthrone Him!
Raise, raise the song on high!
The virgin sings her lullaby.
Joy! Joy! For Christ is born,
The babe, the son of Mary!

The question “What Child Is This?” is a great substitute title for the original title.  It simply asks the question and then proceeds to give the most straight forward answer without mincing words.  This child is Christ the King.  Then in addition to that (in the first verse) we are to haste (hurry up) to bring Him the laud or praise that He deserves.

The second verse captures some of the hidden meaning of the original title of The Manger Throne.  Why did Jesus lay there in such a humble state of affairs where common animals were getting their meals?  For the immediate circumstances, we should remember that babies didn’t normally lay in dirty places like this.  For a baby to be found in such a place would seem obviously out of place.  So when the angels told the shepherds that a baby would be found lying in a manger in the town of Bethlehem, they rushed to see if they could find such a sight as this.  Of course they had a great many questions for Mary and Joseph who detailed the reasons for just such a state of affairs.  They were both of the lineage of David and Joseph in particular was descended through the kingly lineage even through Zerubbabel.  They were forced to travel to Bethlehem because of the census.  Mary was still a virgin at this point and it seems that would have been shared with all who came to see the newborn baby.

But the songwriter is reaching deep into the theology of the humility of Jesus Christ.  This was only a taste of what is to come.  The ultimate humility of Jesus Christ would later be demonstrated on the cross.  Lying there in the humble manger the silent word is pleading that He will later be humiliated to the point of death for sinful men like you and me.  I wonder if the words born and borne are used here as a play on words on purpose.  For Christ is born, but later the cross is borne by Christ.  So why does this baby lie in such mean estate?  It is the gospel message lying there in the manger that the Messiah came meek and mild according to prophecy, see Isaiah 42:1-4 with Matthew 12:15-21.

The last verse serves as an invitation for all to come to this humble King.  Come peasant (shepherd), come king (wise men), both for the same purpose of exalting Him as King within your hearts.  All alike no matter their social status may receive Him as a King.  He is the King of Kings and brings salvation to all.  The rich man comes to the poor lowly manger, the poor man comes to the poor lowly manger.  We all alike are in need of the salvation that this poor baby lying in the manger brings to us all free of charge.

All in all, I must say that I am reaping the benefits about 150 years later of this man’s poor misfortune of near death sickness.  This Christmas carol not only captures the true meaning of Christmas, but sees within the Christmas story the message of salvation that God intended to bring through His Son Jesus the Christ the Messiah the King.  Through tragedy, God brought forth a Christmas carol that is sung by many famous people who may or may not grasp the depth of its true meaning.  Yet here it is being sung during this season for all to hear.  The rich, the poor, the peasant, the king, the invitation is still going out for us to enthrone this child who sat on The Manger Throne on the throne within our hearts.  What a great Christmas carol!

Have fun and stay busy – Luke 19:13

-The Orange Mailman

P.S.  In a strange twist of events, the only comic strip that I read today that mentions the name of Jesus is the quite liberal strip Doonesbury.  In it, conservatives are portrayed as being more concerned about freedom to display a manger scene than the meaning of the manger scene.  I have to confess, I think Christians get a little paranoid about our right to say “Merry Christmas” and someone else’s right to say “Happy Holidays”.  If Christians would get back to portraying the character of Jesus, that meek and mild servant of God who did not consider a manger to be too humble of a throne, maybe we could get people to listen to us that Christians are simply sinners saved by a God who humbled Himself.  There is the humility of lying in a manger, and the humility of dying on the cross.  When are Christians going to learn to give up their rights and join Jesus in His humility?  That is the essence of the gospel.

O Lord, in distress they sought you;
they poured out a whispered prayer
when your discipline was upon them.
Like a pregnant woman
who writhes and cries out in her pangs
when she is near to giving birth,
so were we because of you, O Lord;
we were pregnant, we writhed,
but we have given birth to wind.
We have accomplished no deliverance in the earth,
and the inhabitants of the world have not fallen.
Your dead shall live; their bodies shall rise.
You who dwell in the dust, awake and sing for joy!
For your dew is a dew of light,
and the earth will give birth to the dead.

Come, my people, enter your chambers,
and shut your doors behind you;
hide yourselves for a little while
until the fury has passed by.
For behold, the Lord is coming out from his place
to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity,
and the earth will disclose the blood shed on it,
and will no more cover its slain.

The PreWrath Rapture position states that the time of Jacob’s trouble (the great tribulation) will be occurring during the last half of Daniel’s 70^th week.  Israel will be disciplined during this time and come to repentance.  When that occurs, the LORD descends from heaven with a shout, He resurrects the righteous dead, then the living righteous are raptured up to meet Him in the air receiving their resurrection bodies without having to experience death.  They are temporarily taken to heaven in order to escape the eschatological wrath of God which will be poured out at the second coming of Christ.  This wrath is poured out during a period of time known as the Day of the LORD, which immediately follows the great tribulation.  This results in a natural reading of I Thessalonians 4:13-18 and 5:1-11 as one passage.  Also notice how Romans 11:15 tells us that the repentance and acceptance of Israel will result in life from the dead (resurrection).  A comparison with Isaiah 26:16-21 makes for a great study.

I was surprised to read Joel Richardson make a connection between the final stages of birth pangs (which results in Israel’s repentance and deliverance) and the beginning of birth pangs in Matthew 24:4-8, read about it here.  Just because similar terminology is used does not always mean there is a direct parallel.  The context of Matthew 24:4-8 is completely different from Isaiah 26:16-21.  The question at the beginning of the Olivet Discourse is, “What will be the sign of Your coming and of the end of the age?”  The disciples are finally starting to realize a difference between the first coming of Jesus in humility and the coming of Jesus the Messiah in power and glory.  The answer that Jesus gives begins with a description of events that are not to be confused with signs of the end of the age.  Let me explain.

Jesus starts out by saying not to be deceived.  Jesus doesn’t want the disciples to fall for a false sign.  He states that many will come in His name and deceive many people (but don’t be deceived because that is not a sign of His coming).  He also states that there will be wars and rumors of wars (but don’t be deceived because that is not a sign of His coming).  At this point in verse 6, Jesus says not to be alarmed (Throeo) when these things come to pass because they must occur but the end will not be at that point.  Then Jesus names off several things at once and places them all in the category of the beginning of birth pangs.  He names nation rising against nation, kingdom rising against kingdom, famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places.  It is interesting that the word for being alarmed is only used in the new testament three times.  All three times it is used as an admonition not to be [falsely] alarmed about the coming of Christ, see Matthew 24:6, Mark 13:7, II Thessalonians 2:2.

Since Jesus states that these things are not to be signs of the end of the age or signs of His coming, the disciples could be assured any time something of that nature happened that the coming of Christ was not close at hand.  An earthquake could occur and it was not a sign of Christ’s coming.  A famine or disease could break out and this was not an event at which to sound the alarm.  A change of governmental powers?  Not a sign of Christ’s coming.  This is why I believe these beginning of birth pains are general events all throughout history not necessarily related to the end of the age.  Romans 8:18-25 tells us how creation is groaning (in the pains of childbirth) and longing for deliverance from the curse of sin.  This groaning is not a sign of Christ’s coming either.  It tells of general events throughout history like wars, earthquakes, famines, and pestilences designed to make us eager for Christ’s coming, but not acting as a harbinger for it.

After these events which Jesus terms “the beginning of birth pains” (or pangs, whichever you prefer), He then describes persecution for the word of God as the gospel is being preached, see Matthew 24:9-14.  This should not have been a new revelation for the disciples.  In fact, when Jesus sent out the twelve disciples to preach the gospel He warned them at that time that they would be persecuted and sometimes put to death, see Matthew 10:16-24.  The language which Matthew records here directly parallels the language that Jesus used in Matthew 24:9-14.  The point is the same: as the gospel is being preached, the disciples will experience tribulation and persecution for their association with the name of Jesus.  Anytime persecution or tribulation arises on account of the word of God, it is not a sign of Christ’s coming.

It is only when Jesus describes the sign of the abomination of desolation that we begin a sequence which we can safely say that Jesus meant to be a sign of the end of the age, see Matthew 24:15-31.  From here, we see the sequence of the abomination of desolation, then the great tribulation, then the glorious coming of Christ.  This great tribulation is not a different kind of tribulation than the persecution which the disciples would experience prior to this.  The only difference is the intensity.  It is still persecution which occurs as the gospel is being preached.  It is still persecution for association with Jesus Christ.  It is still against the disciples (the elect).  At the same time, God will be dealing with Israel in order to bring her to repentance.  Here is the final stage of birth pains (as opposed to the beginning) which will result in Israel’s deliverance.  The two should not be confused.

Right now as we speak, we can expect persecution for association with Jesus Christ.  After the abomination of desolation, this persecution will become so intense that it is termed the great tribulation.  But after Israel repents (being provoked to jealousy by the Gentiles, see Romans 10:19, 11:11) our deliverance will be at hand.  After the resurrection and rapture, the people of God will be safely protected as the LORD comes to pour out His wrath during the Day of the LORD.  That’s the basic thought behind II Thessalonians 1:5-8.  Our relief from affliction will be granted when Christ comes in power and glory.  Take a look and see for yourself.

Have fun and stay busy – Luke 19:13

-The Orange Mailman

Veteran’s Day falls on a Sunday this year which means that some cartoonists have taken the opportunity to recognize Veteran’s Day in a nice Sunday strip.  I will get tomorrow off since that is the day the federal government will recognize the holiday.  Unlike Columbus Day, President’s Day, and Martin Luther King Day which get moved to a Monday, Veteran’s Day observed always falls on that day unless it is a Saturday or Sunday.  I will observe Veteran’s Day by finishing off the closing down of my pool tomorrow.  It’s already covered, I just have to drain it down and blow the lines out.

I tend to be patriotic about my country.  I love the USA.  I never served in the military, but my father did at the cost of his right foot.  Growing up, us kids would take off his artificial foot and put it back on for him like it was some kind of instructional toy.  (Take off strap A, now remove side cover…)  Now the grandkids are doing it too.  My dad doesn’t show it off, it’s just a part of who he is.  He doesn’t talk about what the war was like, but there is that visible reminder that the war did cost him something valuable.

So let’s examine the comic strips that observed Veteran’s Day today.  In orange are the strips that I read on a daily basis.  BC continues to be a great strip and I like that Mason Mastroianni has kept Johnny Hart’s name on the title.  I wondered if BC would fade out after Johnny Hart’s death, but Mastroianni has done a pretty fair job of putting out solid work as a cartoonist.  Wiley the one legged poet writes a tribute to veterans as he relaxes under a tree.

Doonesbury has done a fair service to veterans the last few years with the evolution of BD into a combat veteran who lost a leg, and the introduction of Ray and Toggle, two newer characters who struggle with PTSD.  I like Toggle (Leo) who has married Alex, the daughter of Mike Doonesbury, who the strip has revolved around since the beginning.  In today’s strip, Toggle and BD are talking about their struggles which is slightly different than how most other cartoonists are handling their tribute to veterans.  While not the best tribute, it was well done.

In Herb and Jamaal, Herb’s son, Ezekiel, is quoting knowledge of African-American veterans to his father who seems very proud that his son understands the meaning of what he is quoting.  Luann has a reference, but it doesn’t really highlight the idea of veterans serving except if you take the irony that Tiffany thinks that high school is war when in fact her struggles pale in comparison to the sacrifices that many military men and women have had to make.  Pooch Café will make you smile if you understand Poncho, the main “pooch” in Pooch Café.  Cake or Death (cartoons by Alex Baker) has a strip up which mentions veterans.  Mallard Fillmore basically says, “thanks veterans”, as opposed to “thanks elections”.  Curtis has a neat twist, the excitement of a veteran coming home from a tour of duty.

But let’s get onto today’s winners.  Two honorable mentions are Red and Rover and Wizard of Id.  In Red and Rover, Red is in his cub scout uniform along with his best friend, his dog Rover.  He is saluting the flag paying tribute to the fallen veterans.  Is it sad that they served and died, or would it be sadder if they had not?  That’s the question posed by this strip.  Excellent job, Brian Basset.  View it here.  Wizard of Id has Sir Rodney and Bung on their way to visit some of Sir Rodney’s old friends.  On the way, Sir Rodney is describing their personalities to Bung and you can tell he is quite fond of the people he is describing.  Then they get to the wall with their names on them.  It’s a stark reminder that these were people with personalities who lived and died and may their memory live on with us.  I like it and you can view it here.

But the winner today is a strip that I only started reading regularly in the past year.  Baldo is a good solid family-friendly comic strip with a Hispanic flavor.  Baldo and his friend Cruz go to visit an older friend who served in the military.  As they are standing in his yard, Baldo says they know they are supposed to thank him for his service, but instead they want to ask him for something.  The last panel fleshes out what the request was as this older veteran is describing to them some old war stories as they listen with anticipation.  The art is so high quality with excellent backgrounds, an eye for detail on lawns, drinking glasses, and just everything; it really catches your eye.  Even though it glosses over the gory side of war, even though many veterans don’t want to talk about their experiences, it still drives home that sometimes there can be insight when talking about these stories.  What may seem meaningless to us now, are somebody else’s life experiences that could be valued.  I absolutely love it.  Excellent job by Hector D. Cantu and Carlos Castellanos.  View it here.

Happy Veteran’s Day Dad.  I hope you got a chance to read Baldo today.  I look forward to seeing you in your play next weekend.

Have fun and stay busy – Luke 19:13

-The Orange Mailman

Let me say up front, this is true spiritual warfare.  Jesus heads into the wilderness because the devil will be tempting Him.  He goes without food for 40 days as a fast unto the LORD.  Then the battle begins.  Matthew includes this story, not to portray Jesus as a rabbi quoting the scriptures, but as the Son of God using the scriptures with power to defeat the devil.  The quotation of scripture was not simply to reveal information, but to demonstrate power.  The prophets had spoken long ago and many of these prophecies had been written down.  Moses as a prophet had preached a series of sermons on the law before Israel entered into the promised land.  These sermons are contained in the book of Deuteronomy and this is where Jesus quotes from three times.  The truths contained therein were not for that generation only.  Each time He quotes the scriptures Jesus states, “It is written,” with confidence.  Jesus asserts the authority of these words as not merely spoken words, but written for the benefit of generations to come.  Let’s examine the power of God through the written word.

By Every Word of God

Jesus has been fasting for 40 days.  Throughout the law and prophets, fasting occurred at times of repentance, I Samuel 7:6, Nehemiah 9:1, humility, Psalm 35:13, 69:10, and seeking the LORD, Daniel 9:3 and Joel 2:12.  Here the Holy Spirit leads Jesus to fast in preparation for His confrontation with the devil himself.  It should be no surprise that the devil’s first temptation is for Jesus to break His fast.  If Satan can get Jesus to break His fast, then His mind will be on fleshly things instead of spiritual things.  The tempter appeals to His identity as the Son of God which makes Him able to produce bread from stones.

Jesus remembers how God provided bread in the wilderness for the Israelites.  Yes, bread from heaven could happen and be within God’s will.  However, what was the purpose for the provision of bread in the wilderness?  Deuteronomy 8:2-3 holds the answer as to why God did what He did.  First, God allowed the Israelites to come to a place where they were hungry and without food.  In Exodus 16, it was not a sin for the Israelites to call out to God for food, but only in grumbling against Moses and Aaron did they sin.  God wanted them to call upon Him in the midst of their hunger.  The reason why God brought them to a place of hunger was for them to learn the lesson that they must depend upon God for everything.  There is more to life than just eating bread.   They were brought to a place of dependence upon God for eating each meal.  This was to encourage them to look to Him for everything, food, water, clothing, and His Words for instruction.  So when Moses preached, “Man does not live by bread only, but by every word of God,” this was a principle of establishing God’s Words and instructions as being more important than our physical food.

As Jesus quoted this scripture to the devil, He was essentially saying, “I don’t need to turn stones into bread, I have the Word of God.”  How appropriate this scripture is for us today!  In our culture in the United States, we are bombarded with advertisements for food constantly.  Many of us are overweight and out of shape.  We eat when we don’t need to and gluttony is still a sin.  If we were to apply this scripture to our temptations we could overcome the devil and be more concerned with God’s Word than we are for our next meal.

Tempting God

Next the devil demonstrates a little supernatural power by carrying Jesus to the top of the temple setting Him upon a pinnacle.  Then the devil quotes scripture by saying that Jesus could jump off the temple and be saved because the angels will rescue Him.  The quotation is from Psalm 91 which talks about God’s protection over those that trust in the LORD.  They have God as their refuge so no enemy can trap, terrorize, plague, or harm them.  The devil takes the portion of verses 11-12 out of the context of the enemy coming at those that God protects.  Only quoting that portion makes it seem like God will protect them in all circumstances.  Instead of Jesus going back and giving a full exegesis of the passage, He pointedly puts His finger on the nature of the sin that would be committed if He yielded to the temptation.

Jesus remembered the words of Moses as he preached to the Israelites about an event that occurred in Exodus 17.  Moses preached that they were not to test God and gave the bad example of when they tested Him at Massah.  At that time, the children of Israel had no water to drink.  Instead of asking God for water, or believing that He could provide the water, they took another approach.  There are two statements recorded which show that the people were testing God, trying to get a reaction out of Him, rather than trusting God.  The first statement is recorded in Exodus 17:2.  They were making fun of Moses in saying, “Give us some water” when they knew he had no water to give.  The second statement is in Exodus 17:7 where it is recorded that they tested God saying, “Is the LORD among us or not?”  They tried to get a reaction out of God by questioning whether or not God was really with them.  Instead of trusting that He would provide, instead of remembering the manna, instead of remembering the plagues upon Egypt, they tested God.  Is God really here?  Or better yet, God has to prove Himself to us.

As Jesus quoted this scripture, He was essentially saying, “To jump off this pinnacle would be testing God and that is a sin which God commanded we shall not do.”  Even though the sermon originally addressed a situation which pertained to the Israelites, this type of sin where people test God is quite common.  It’s the attitude of “God has to do this because He promised.”  This is dangerous thinking because it is a sin to test God.  The devil prefaced his temptation with “If you are the Son of God,” making it seem like His Sonship needed to be tested.  If God really delights in You so much, then of course He will protect You.  Prove it by jumping off.  Any type of action that would test God instead of trusting Him (whether He decides to protect or not) is a sin.  In the midst of the health and wealth preachers, this scripture needs to be applied more often than it is.  Trusting God whether He protects or not instead of testing Him to get a desired reaction is what God’s people need to do based on this scripture.

Worship the LORD thy God

The devil again uses the power at his disposal to take Jesus up to a mountain from which the devil shows Jesus the kingdoms of this world.  I believe the devil supernaturally showed him everything – all the power, all the military might, all the influence that he possessed – and offered Him everything, every single place where the devil has any type of foothold, all offered to Christ in a moment of time.  However, the devil isn’t going to just give up all of his power without expecting a little something in return.  The temptation here is for Jesus to worship the devil.  Now we can officially refer to him as Satan since Jesus reveals this as an alternate name in His rebuke.  If Jesus will place Himself in a position of subservience to the devil, the devil will simply hand over the whole sinful realm over which he has dominion.  The issue is that there is only one power that man should be in subservience to, and that is God.  Jesus, as a man, is being tempted.  He stands as the last Adam.  Adam was created, was tempted, and fell into sin.  Jesus took on the nature of man, was tempted, and defeated the devil by using the word of God with power.  The nature of the temptation is essentially, you’ll gain all this if you will just compromise.

Jesus remembered the words of Moses as he preached to the Israelites about placing God first and foremost in all things.  The first portion of worshipping the LORD is probably taken from Deuteronomy 6:5 which is the first commandment.  The second portion may be further instruction from the prophet Samuel found in I Samuel 7:3 and 12:24.  Perhaps Jesus is referring to Deuteronomy 6:13 for both portions where fear would be the equivalent of worshipping.  Either way, the underlying premise is “written” in the scriptures as an unwavering principle.  The command is for us to worship God only and no one else or nothing else.  We worship Him alone by placing Him first in all things.  Then we serve Him alone which is how we pursue all things as we go through life.  These two, worshipping and serving, are different but closely related.

As Jesus quoted this scriptural principle, He was essentially saying, “The command from God is for us to place God first in all things by worshipping Him.  Then as we go through life, we serve God alone and no other cause or person.”  While we don’t experience the temptation to bow down and worship the devil in the way that Jesus could have, the temptation for us to demote God is there quite often.  Any time we have the opportunity to gain something or get ahead in a certain area but have to compromise our love for God, that’s a temptation from the devil.  God must be first as we set aside our pride (which results in rude comments and hatred), our passion (which leads to lust), and our want for material things (which results in covetousness).  Let us not worship the devil by moving God from His place of preeminence in our lives.

The overall picture portrayed by the Tax Collector is that Jesus submits Himself to John’s baptism to fulfill all righteousness.  Then Jesus submits Himself to the leading of the Holy Spirit in order to be tempted by the devil with three powerful temptations.  As powerful as these temptations are, the Word of God is more powerful.  Jesus demonstrates the power that the Word of God has over temptation to show us the path to victory over the devil.  We should be prepared at all times to say audibly to the devil, “Away with you, Satan!  For it is written, ‘You shall worship the LORD your God and Him only you shall serve.’”  It will be a short time later that the people will be astonished with the doctrine of Jesus because He teaches the scriptures with true power and not like the scribes, see Matthew 7:29.  Preachers have a powerful weapon which should not remain sheathed.

Have fun and stay busy – Luke 19:13

-The Orange Mailman

I also get questions from folks who want to know my views.  So sometimes I am having private conversations through e-mail about various issues.  I nice fellow asked me a question about the mountains not being found at the seventh bowl in Revelation 16:20.  The question affected the timeline that we as PreWrathers set forth as far as when different earthquakes occur.  So I typed up a little something that perhaps some of you may find interesting.  Here it is:

I think one thing we need to remember is that Revelation is a transition from this age into the age to come.  These things unfold over a period of time with the great tribulation followed by the Day of the LORD.  It seems like the passages which you have mentioned and which I perused just before typing this e-mail which deal with the issue of an earthquake all occur during the Day of the LORD, which makes sense.  Haggai 2:6-7, 21-22 both contain references to shaking the earth and the heavens (which the language seems to be literal) along with an overthrow of the kingdoms of this world.

Hebrews 12:26-28 gives us the explanation that these things are removed when they are shaken, but focuses on the removing of the kingdoms of this world with the kingdom that we have received (the kingdom of God) cannot be shaken.

So throughout the Day of the LORD, I believe we will see a literal shaking of heaven and earth. And we will see a literal removal of the kingdoms (governmental structures) of the world as we transition into the age to come with the kingdom of heaven being established here on earth. But does this mean that there will be no more mountains in the age to come here on earth? If we believe that Isaiah 2:2-4 occurs in the age to come, then there will be mountains. I believe Mount Zion will be one of those mountains, see Psalm 125 and 2:6. If Amos 9:13, Joel 3:18, Ezekiel 40:2, 43:12 are talking about the millennium then there will be mountains.

So when we look at our Revelation timeline, what do we see? At the sixth seal, there is a great earthquake which shakes every single island and mountain to the point where they can be considered “removed” out from the place that they were. In short, they are still there, but jarred so severely that they won’t go back the way they were. The topography of the earth will be altered. This is a harbinger to the Day of the LORD which we know will begin shortly after this particular earthquake since the rapture will occur then the opening of the seventh seal then the Day of the LORD.

When we come to Revelation 16:20 which occurs at the seventh bowl which closes the event known as the Day of the LORD, I confess I am at somewhat of a loss to explain what at first glance seems to be literal language. Upon examination though, it makes no sense that the islands are fleeing away and the mountains are simply not found. If we go back to Haggai 2 and realize that the heavens and the earth have been shaken throughout this whole Day of the LORD time period and that this also includes a removal of the kingdoms of this world so that the kingdom of God may remain, then this makes more sense. When the seventh bowl was initially poured out, John saw a great earthquake and proceeds to tell us that it was more severe than any other. Then the cities of the nations fall. Then Babylon comes up before the LORD so that she may experience the wrath of God. This is the removal of the kingdoms of this world so that the kingdom of God may remain. So it seems that this language is here to show that we are transitioning into the age to come. It could be a figurative statement that parallels passages like Psalm 97:5, Amos 9:5, Micah 1:4 and Nahum 1:5, which talk about the mountains or the land melting at the presence of the LORD. Or it could be that the topography will be altered in some way so that the islands really do seem to run away and the mountains (as we currently know them) simply will not be found. But we know that in the age to come there will be mountains and coastlands. So it seems to me that the seventh bowl is the transition point whereby the shaking of Haggai 2 occurs removing once and for all any traces of the kingdoms of this world, transitioning us into the age to come.

I confess, this is new territory for me.  I hadn’t pondered all of the ramifications of the seventh bowl until I was asked the question.  Any other thoughts out there?  In the meantime, here is a song that I just love.  Listen to it at this link here.

Have fun and stay busy – Luke 19:13

-The Orange Mailman

Jesus prophesied that the temple would be destroyed. Later in the evening, four disciples come privately and receive instruction concerning the Coming of the Son of Man and the End of the Age, but Jesus’ immediate response to the crowd recorded in Luke 21 did not occur on the Mount of Olives.  It occurred publicly at the temple in the hearing of the crowds.

Matthew 24-25 and Mark 13 both contain a discourse which occurs on the Mount of Olives, hence the name, the Olivet Discourse. Luke 21, while containing some of the same aspects, is significantly different from Matthew and Mark. The first difference is that the basic framework of Matthew and Mark is missing from Luke. Matthew and Mark both possess sections which mention the beginning of birth pains (Matthew 24:4-8, Mark 13:5-8), the preaching of the gospel in the midst of persecution unto the end of the age (Matthew 24:9-14, Mark 13:9-13), and the section which PreWrathers love in Matthew 24:15-31, Mark 13:14-27, containing the clear sequence of

#1- The Abomination of Desolation
#2- The Great Tribulation
#3- The Cosmic Signs
#4- The Coming of Christ
#5- The Gathering of the Elect

In Luke, we have some description of those things which are described as birth pains in Matthew and Mark, but they are not designated as such. In Luke, we have persecution, but there is no mention that the gospel will be preached during this time of persecution for a witness in all nations and then the end [of the age] will come. The Abomination of Desolation, Daniel the prophet, the Great Tribulation, and the Gathering of the Elect are nowhere to be found in Luke 21. We do have mention of signs in the sun, moon, and stars, but not specifically what those signs will be (i.e. it doesn’t say they will go dark). We also have mention of the Coming of the Son of Man.

The second difference (which actually comes first) is that there is no mention of the discourse beginning on the Mount of Olives in Luke. As far as we know from reading Luke’s gospel, the crowd asks Jesus the questions concerning the destruction of the temple. Jesus responds directly to the crowd speaking of a number of things including false Christs, wars, earthquakes, famines, pestilences, and even great signs from heaven. He then talks about persecution for those who believe in Him.

Then Jesus answers the question posed to Him concerning the destruction of the temple in the ears of the general public. He tells all who are standing in the temple court that when Jerusalem is surrounded by armies that the destruction [of which He had just spoken] is quite near. Every person clearly understood what Jesus the Prophet from Nazareth was saying. Quite soon, in the not too distant future, armies will surround Jerusalem and the temple will be desolated. Jesus goes on to say that this will begin a dispersion for Israelites during a time period which Jesus terms “the times of the Gentiles”. Please note that these comments are unique to Luke.

The sign that they asked for concerning the destruction of the temple had been given. The sign is that Jerusalem will be surrounded by armies.  Jesus gives no other sign as recorded by Luke. But Jesus goes on to describe other events. After verse 24, the narrative continues. Jesus describes what occurs after the “times of the Gentiles” has concluded at His glorious coming.  The events surrounding His coming are summarized in comparison with what the disciples will hear later.  There is a break between verses 28-29 which may indicate Luke is inserting two parables from another point in time into this particular event. The summary at the end of the passage in 21:37-38 shows us that Luke could have drawn from sources who heard Him speak in front of the temple or those who heard Him speak in private on the Mount of Olives. The main point still stands that Luke lays out Jesus’ initial response as occurring at the temple.  Luke 21:37 seems to indicate that the teaching on the Mount of Olives occurs subsequent to this Temple Discourse.

Later on in the evening when four of Jesus’ disciples come to Him privately, the subject is slightly different. While we do not have the words in Mark, Matthew does point out that the disciples are inquiring concerning two things which He has spoken of throughout His ministry on different occasions. Those two things are His Coming and the End of the Age. The curiosity of the disciples is piqued. They heard Jesus speaking in front of the crowds concerning the destruction of the temple. They understand vaguely about this Coming and the End of the Age, but how does it all fit together?  After this inquiry by these four disciples, the response is what we know as The Olivet Discourse whose main subject is the Coming of Christ, not the destruction of the temple since Jesus had already given those details in front of the crowds.

The difference in the arrangement of each gospel is something we may never fully understand. Each gospel writer was free to choose events or leave them out depending on what themes he was highlighting. It seems that Luke had an affixation with Jerusalem and its fate. Luke alone includes Mary and Joseph presenting Jesus as an infant at the temple in Jerusalem. Luke alone records the discussion during the transfiguration concerning the death of Christ which must happen at Jerusalem. Luke alone records the time when Jesus “set His face toward Jerusalem”. Luke records the hauntingly strange phrase, “it cannot be that a prophet perish out of Jerusalem.” In Luke, Jesus anticipates those who believe that the Kingdom of God would immediately appear simply because He was going to Jerusalem. Luke alone records the address to the daughters of Jerusalem. Luke alone records the instructions to wait in Jerusalem until they received power from on high.

And most notably, Luke is the only one who records Jesus weeping over Jerusalem as He beholds the city.  This event is just after the triumphal ascent, which began at the Mount of Olives, and just before the cleansing of the temple. For our study, it would be noteworthy to examine exactly what Jesus said as He wept over the city.

19:41  And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it, 42 Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes. 43 For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side, 44 And shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation.

It is obvious that Luke wanted to focus on the theme of Jerusalem’s future destruction by highlighting this little clip in Jesus’ sorrows. Luke’s presentation of the answer to the question of the destruction of the temple further clarifies what Jesus was weeping about as He beheld Jerusalem. Luke’s boldness in including these awful, foreboding words of Jesus actually authenticated Jesus’ ministry as a prophet to that generation. Luke’s gospel was published before Acts, which was published before the death of Paul, which occurred before the destruction of the temple. So as Luke included those words, their fulfillment was yet future. It is difficult not to see the similarity between these words and the words which Jesus uttered which prompted the questions from the crowd.

21:6 As for these things which ye behold, the days will come, in the which there shall not be left one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.

Jesus prophesied events that were fulfilled in 70 A.D., but the Olivet Discourse was not fulfilled in 70 A.D. 70 A.D. fulfillment is important. It validated Jesus’ ministry as a prophet to His generation.

Luke 21 contains a discourse at the temple

The premise is that in Luke 21, there is a question concerning the destruction of the temple and a sign to look for just before that destruction would happen. Jesus answers the question by describing the sign of Jerusalem being surrounded by armies. Later, in a private setting, four disciples come to Jesus and inquire about when these things would happen, and more specifically, what would be the sign of His coming and of the end of the age. Jesus then delivers the Olivet Discourse which focuses on His coming since He has already answered questions regarding the destruction of the temple in a public setting.

The issue that I left open up above is whether or not Luke included any material from the Olivet Discourse in the latter part of what we should term the temple discourse. After verse 24, Jesus makes a leap to the end of the age describing His coming, which is precisely the point at which Jesus has answered the question concerning the sign of the destruction of the temple. I mentioned that Luke could have drawn from other sources which occurred later and inserted them back into this particular Temple Discourse. While that is possible, it is not probable. All of Luke 21:8-36 was most likely spoken in public at the temple at the same time. There are two main reasons that I believe there is a continuity in the entire text.

#1- In verse 24, Jesus has mentioned the dispersion of Israel amongst the Gentiles nations and Jerusalem being trodden down by Gentile nations, both continuing until the times of the Gentiles have been fulfilled. Why would Jesus leave this issue open ended? Although His Coming was not inquired of, the description of this period in time should be followed by the conclusion of this period in time. As Jesus describes His coming, He is giving the conclusion for the times of the Gentiles. It may at first seem out of place. Jesus is supposed to be talking about the temple, right?

As Jesus inserts comments concerning His coming, He is not off-topic at all. The subject is still the destruction of the temple which would lead into a period of time characterized by Israel dispersed and Jerusalem trodden down. (Note: I believe that the times of the Gentiles began with the Babylonian captivity.  Jesus is addressing the conclusion of that time, not its onset.) What will bring this time to a conclusion? The Son of Man will come with power and great glory. Luke goes on to include a comment concerning the kingdom of God being close at hand when these things come to pass. The kingdom of God will obviously bring to a close the times of the Gentiles. So all comments that Jesus makes concerning His coming are completely appropriate even though He has not been asked concerning His coming in this setting. He is bringing the original question to a complete conclusion.

#2- Practically everything that Luke writes is original and unique to Luke. No other gospel writer includes the words of Christ as Luke records them here. There are a couple of parallels, but they are not identical and contain significant differences. Consider the following.

Vs. 25 ~ Has a vague parallel in the description of the cosmic signs in Matthew and Mark. However, Luke does not describe exactly what the sun, moon, and stars will do; just simply that there will be signs. Luke includes that there will be roaring of the waves of the sea as well.
Vs. 26 ~ “Men’s hearts failing them for fear.” No other gospel writer records this.
Vs. 27 ~ Christ coming with great power and glory. Parallels in other gospels, but not just in the Olivet Discourse. This is how Christ spoke on a number of occasions concerning His coming, Matthew 13:41, 16:28, Mark 8:38, 14:62, Luke 9:26.
Vs. 28 ~ “Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near.” No other gospel writer records these words.
Vs. 29-33 These words have parallels in the Olivet Discourse. The wording has a few key differences that lead me to believe that Christ spoke them during the temple discourse, then further clarified and spoke them again during the Olivet Discourse. In Luke, Jesus is speaking about the kingdom of God as the conclusion for the times of the Gentiles. In Matthew and Mark, He has given the sign of the abomination of desolation to occur just before His coming. So the words apply slightly different to both circumstances.
Vs. 34-36  “But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly. For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.” No other gospel writer records these words. They are unique to Luke. There is simply too much original material for me to believe that Luke copied from Mark, Matthew, or even Q. Luke received his material from those who heard Jesus speak at the temple. Matthew and Mark received their material from those who heard Jesus speak on the Mount of Olives.

Based on these two reasons, I believe that Luke’s entire discourse as recorded here in Luke 21 was spoken at the temple. There are parallels, but the first discourse led into the second discourse which prompted Jesus to review some of the things He had already said and further clarify them.

Anyone disagree?

Have fun and stay busy – Luke 19:13

-The Orange Mailman

John’s baptism seems to have materialized out of nowhere.  There isn’t a record of anyone baptizing people in the manner of John before his ministry in the wilderness, unless we explore what the religious establishment required of Gentiles when joining the nation of Israel.  There was a ceremonial cleansing prescribed in the law on certain occasions, see Leviticus 11:39-40, 14:8-9, 15:5-10, 13, 16-18, 21-22, 27, 16:24, 28, 17:15-16, 22:6.  Each orthodox Jewish community had a mikveh (which was a bath for the purpose of these ritual cleansings) which was necessary to restore ritual purity based on these statutes.  It was a complete immersion in water symbolizing the cleansing process from defilement.  The religious establishment took this full body cleansing and required Gentiles to be fully immersed in water to signify their complete forsaking of idolatry in turning to the one true God.  So baptism was a symbol of repentance in some sense, but it was designed for unclean Gentiles.  What John was saying in essence was, “Repent, turn from your sins.  You must start over in order to enter the kingdom of heaven.  You have forfeited any right you may have had as Israelites because of your sinfulness.”  The response was stark.  Common folk, who were convicted of their sins, repented and were baptized.  The religious establishment, however, saw no need for repentance.  But since this was a religious thing going on out in the wilderness, and since many Israelites were following the teachings of John, some of them decided to go out.  But John derides them for their religious stance.

Matthew 3:7-10 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming for baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers!  Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?  Bear fruit in keeping with repentance.  And do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father,’ for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham.  Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees.  Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

John states that these who have come would give an excuse within themselves for not repenting.  The excuse is that they have Abraham as a father.  It may seem as if John is ascribing words to the Pharisees which they may not be thinking.  However, if we look at John 8:33-42, we see an exchange between Jesus and the scribes & Pharisees in which they readily claim Abraham as their father and even equate it to having God as their Father.  So this idea of “We have Abraham for our father” was their creed.  They had no need for repentance because they had never been unclean Gentiles who worshiped other  gods.  John gives their excuse for not repenting stating it out loud, and then proceeds to deal with this idea that they have no need of repentance because they are of a certain lineage.

The attitude (boiled down) is that God has to treat us in a certain way because we are a chosen offspring.  John’s response is simple.  God doesn’t need you.  God doesn’t need you to fulfill His promises.  Yes, God made promises to Abraham, but God has the ability to discard you and raise up other children to fulfill those promises.  In examining the character of Abraham, it is fitting here to note that Abraham was not an Israelite.  Abraham was a pagan Gentile who learned to walk by faith, Joshua 24:2-3.  The promises made to Abraham were such that he would be the father of many nations, Genesis 17:4-6.  Further, all nations would be blessed because of his faith and obedience, Genesis 22:18.  The religious establishment had focused so long on the aspects which pertained to the nation of Israel that they were blind to the overall plan of God to bring salvation to the Gentiles.

John’s rebuke is not that he would never baptize them.  They must first repent and bring forth fruits worthy of repentance, then they could be baptized in anticipation of the kingdom of heaven.  Unless they believed that the wrath of God was truly upon them, they would see no need for repentance.  The common folk all too readily believed that they were deserving of God’s wrath.  Now John states that those fruit trees which should have been producing fruit all along would be cut down.  This is a clear admonishment of the religious establishment centered in Jerusalem.  John is admitting that these leaders have been the fruit tree(s) for some time, but a lack of fruit in the area of repentance will bring upon them swift judgment since the axe was at the root of the tree even as John preached.  The excuse that Abraham is your father will not avert the coming judgment upon you or Israel as a whole.

Matthew the Tax Collector arranged portions of his Guide to Fulfilled Prophecy in a thematic way.  Here he notes the contrast between the common folk who repented at John’s preaching and the religious who felt they needed no repentance.  He also included an ominous warning that the axe was at the root of the fruit trees.  Later, the Tax Collector will bring this idea back to the forefront in Matthew 21:23-46.  The ardent student of the word will clearly notice the parallels between this passage here at the beginning of his gospel and the judgment which Christ pronounces in parable form toward the end of his gospel.

The Baptism of Jesus

The Tax Collector’s Guide to Fulfilled Prophecy should contain a mention of the baptism of Jesus.  This is because the word fulfill is used in a very unique sense.  When Jesus came to John, John would have stopped the entire affair right there.  Jesus, however, pointed out that it was necessary to fulfill all righteousness.  How could the baptism of Jesus by this wilderness preacher fulfill all righteousness?  If we remember that the word for fulfill means to bring to an overflowing, or fill it to the full, we see that the righteousness demonstrated in the obedience of Christ would not have been brought to its fullness without this initial act of obedience.  Jesus had to be baptized as an example for us.  He as the elder brother leads the way.  We follow.  All righteousness was brought to a fullness when Jesus submitted to John’s baptism.  This was made evident immediately when Jesus ascended from the baptismal waters.  The voice of the Father confirmed that all righteousness had been fulfilled as the Just One submitted to the will of His Father.  Only after submitting to John’s baptism would Jesus be led by the Holy Spirit and then begin His public ministry.  Let us not let the familiarity of the story cause its wonder to fade.

Have fun and stay busy – Luke 19:13

-The Orange Mailman