The One New Man Study - The Theology Of Jew And Gentile - One In Messiah
Entire Study Recently Updated January 2006
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The One New Man Study - The Theology Of Jew And Gentile - One In Messiah Entire Study Recently Updated January 2006
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Lesson Eighteen: The Days Prior To The Final Exodus and The Gentile Church
Text:
Rev. 12:11 -
And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their
testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.
Death could be heard from the house of Pharaoh right on down to the lowest slave. Wails of grief could be heard breaking the eerie silence in the land. In Goshen, the Israelites were quietly sequestered behind bloodstained doors. Not even a dog barked to disturb their peace:
Exodus 11:7 - But against any of the children
of Israel shall not a dog move his tongue, against man or beast: that ye may
know how that the Lord doth put a difference between the Egyptians and Israel.
Today, we stand poised for another exodus. It has not been 400 years, but nearly 2000 since Yeshuah said "I will come back and take you to be with me." (John 14:3). For 2,000 years the family of Messiah has languished in a foreign country, waiting for His return. Today there are rumblings an EXODUS is imminent. The "last exodus" or "final" exodus if you will. The signposts to which Yeshuah pointed to to indicate His return was soon are appearing rapidly on the horizon. Three key signs indicate the day is near:
In spite of this great time we live in another key fact is certain - troubled and turbulent times are ahead for all of us - JEW and GENTILE. We can expect false messiahs and false prophets to rise quickly. Wars and rivalries between nations and ethnic groups will increase. Famines and earthquakes will multiply and happen in diverse or strange places. Wickedness will mature along side world-wide revival and apostasy. Many will come to the faith of Yeshuah. Many others will walk away because of the events which are ahead of us. Many will lose their lives as well. Many will be persecuted and even killed for the choices facing us in the VERY NEAR FUTURE.
Paul speaks of this anti-Messiah or anti-Christ that will be Satan's own personal representative on earth. The man of sin will be a person, but the "spirit" of Antichrist already is working in the world today. As He will unite the world against God's people during the Great Tribulation period, I believe this spirit will also unite the world against God's people (Jews and Christians) for one last battle before the final exodus, the rapture of the church. It is the belief of this writer that these events will increase in scope and intensity in unprecedented fashion right up to the rapture of the church.
2 Thes. 2:8-12 - And then shall that Wicked be
revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall
destroy with the brightness of his coming: [9] Even him, whose coming is after
the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, [10] And with
all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received
not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. [11] And for this cause God
shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: [12] That they
all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in
unrighteousness. Daniel saw the saints "being handed over the him for a time," and that only those faithful to God will be able to resist him. Zechariah speaks of a time when the whole world will come with Pharaoh-force against Israel (and those who are covenanted with her); in that moment the Lord will ensure her safety.
Zech. 12:3 - And in that day will I make
Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it
shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together
against it.
Jesus Himself warned us in Matthew:
Matthew 13:21 - Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, by and by he is offended.
No matter your view of the rapture, hear this good. What is ahead in the very near future for all those who truly love Yeshuah (AND THOSE WHO WILL DARE TO STAND WITH THE JEWISH PEOPLE WHEN THE WORLD HATES THEM) will not be anything we have experienced in the past. SOME WILL DEPART FROM THE FAITH because of the persecution that is coming. Jesus said He would gather "his elect" with a trumpet "after the DISTRESS (thlipsis) of those days." The vision John saw of the saints in Revelation 7 has always been taught to mean many will be martyred AFTER the rapture of the church. I still believe that.
Rev. 7:13-17 - And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they? [14] And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. [15] Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. [16] They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. [17] For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.
Rev. 6:8-15 - And I looked, and
behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed
with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to
kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the
earth. [9] And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the
souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which
they held: [10] And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy
and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the
earth? [11] And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said
unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their
fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were,
should be fulfilled. [12] And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and,
lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair,
and the moon became as blood; [13] And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth,
even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty
wind. [14] And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and
every mountain and island were moved out of their places. [15] And the kings of
the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the
mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens
and in the rocks of the mountains; [16] And said to the mountains and rocks,
Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and
from the wrath of the Lamb: [17] For the great day of his wrath is come; and who
shall be able to stand? I also believe too that many will be martyred BEFORE THE RAPTURE, DURING and THROUGHOUT the times of trouble spoken of in Scripture. This is not a new doctrine on the end times. It's a call to the Gentile Church that things as we know it are soon to change and change soon. We are going to have to make some choices on whether we are going to just "rest" in our luxurious buildings or whether we are going to seek the heart of Jesus and stand with HIM with our very lives by standing with His Covenant people the Jews. That choice will divide two totally different classes of people in these times that are ahead. Let me change that - they're HERE!
ARE YOU READY TO SUFFER? That's a good question we all need to ask ourselves right now. We need to settle that issue NOW. If we wait to settle it later when the persecution starts we won't be able to stand what is coming. The church in the West has experienced very little serious persecution for our faith in recent years. Oh, people talk about us and a few laugh at us but no one in America has paid with their lives yet for the testimony of the Lord Jesus. Nor have we had to pay for our lives to support God's chosen people- Israel.
Daily there are reports of cruelty and martyrdom. In India a seasoned missionary and his two sons were trapped in their car and burned to death by Hindu extremists protesting their proclamation of the gospel of the Messiah. The Christian population in the Sudan has almost been annihilated by rebel forces determined to eradicate the Christian faith. Uganda is still recovering from the death toll exacted during Idi Amin's reign of terror. A brother in northern Iraq was put to death by family members who were "protecting" their family's honor. All this goes on while we here in America enjoy every possible conceivable blessing we could imagine. But friend, hear me - that is coming to an end soon. The church in the West will soon enter into the sufferings our our fellow brothers soon.
As we get closer to Messiah's return - this will ESCALATE, not decrease. I don't know who these preachers are listening to who proclaim that things in America are going to get better and better. They're not listening to GOD! For the child of God things will be ok either way. If we are killed, we're in heaven. If we're left here to endure hardship, God's grace will perfect and keep us. Either way we're fine. But things for the lukewarm and those who are playing church will NOT BE FINE. Evil and righteousness are maturing together as we enter into this final phase of the harvest. THIS GENERATION will be held the most accountable because of the many blessings and affluence we have today. These two things will only serve as greater judgment if we don't use every thing we have in getting the gospel out.
John sees the harvest in a vision - angels released to gather the righteous into their reward; wicked thrown into the winepress of the Lord's wrath.
Rev. 14:14-20 - And I looked, and behold a
white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat like unto the Son of man, having on his
head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle. [15] And another angel came
out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud,
Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the
time is come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe. [16] And he
that sat on the cloud thrust in his sickle on the earth; and the earth was
reaped. [17] And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven,
he also having a sharp sickle. [18] And another angel came out from the altar,
which had power over fire; and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp
sickle, saying, Thrust in thy sharp
sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are
fully ripe. [19] And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered
the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God.
[20] And the winepress was trodden without the city, and blood came out of the
winepress, even unto the horse bridles, by the space of a thousand and six
hundred furlongs.
Romans 5:9 - Much more then, being now
justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.
Daniel 3:17-18 Yes, sometime in the future the whole world will take a stand against ISRAEL. This will begin before the rapture and just increase to a crescendo during the Great Tribulation period. All the nations will be gathered against Jerusalem and bow to a godless ruler. When that day comes, we believers must be ready to come alongside God's covenant people. At that point, our earthly nationality - whether American, Asian, African, Middle Eastern or another - will no longer be important. What will matter is whether our hearts are one with YESHUAH and we have decided to stand with the Jewish race. As Esther said so long ago, "if we perish, we perish." In other words, if it costs us our very lives we are willing!
My brother Todd said something to me a short time ago. He said that in the first Holocaust many Gentiles stood by and were not willing to stand with them. Many even betrayed Jewish people to the Nazis. I heard recently of a Pentecostal church in Poland who had several Jewish people in their church during World War II. When the Nazis came to power certain ones in that church gave up the Jewish people to the Nazi regime. When the Jewish people see the Gentiles are willing in the face of their SECOND HOLOCAUST to not only stand with them but to shed blood in order to protect them - that will enlighten the Jewish race to the fact that Yeshuah is real in our lives!
Friend, that is the time we're living in and the choice we all are facing soon. During our closing days in EGYPT our focus must be steady. We must rescue others; we must stay in the house with the Lamb's blood on the door and we must be ready to go at a moment's notice. When the call comes, the exodus will happen SWIFTLY!
Isaiah 60:22 - A little one shall become a
thousand, and a small one a strong nation:
I the Lord will hasten it in his time.
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