Tag: Jerusalem

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Bible prophecy Biblical doctrines Israel

Where is the biblical land of Israel?

Map Israel 1

I recently returned from a visit to the modern-day land of Israel where I spoke to believers at some messianic congregations, as well as at a youth camp and a student camp. At one of those events someone handed me a few copies of Andrew Lessey’s small booklet “The Heart of Israel”. The following is drawn from that booklet.

Jeremiah 16:14,15 Therefore, behold, the days come, says the LORD, that it shall no more be said, The LORD lives, that brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt; 15 But, The LORD lives, that brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north, and from all the lands where he had driven them: and I will bring them again into their land that I gave unto their fathers. (KJVER, emphases added)

During the 1990’s about 2 million Jews from Russia and other ex-soviet countries returned (made the Aliyah) to Israel. However, not only have Jews come from the north they have been returning from all countries around the world. The return started in the late 1800’s and has been ongoing ever since. The rise of the Third Reich under Adolf Hitler’s Nazi Germany accelerated arrivals both pre and post World War II. God’s promise as indicated by verse 15 was to their fathers and that promise still stands.

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Bible prophecy The Papacy Trials and temptations

Matthew 24 prophecy

In recent years I have read and studied the eschatological beliefs of the Reformers and of Sir Isaac Newton (1643 – 1727) as well as Henry Grattan Guinness (1835 – 1910). As a result I have changed my view of Bible prophecy from the futurist view to that of a historical view, where I now see that a lot of prophecy has already been fulfilled.1

A lot of Matthew chapter 24 has been fulfilled but one very important aspect–the Return of Christ in final judgment–still remains unfulfilled. (All bold are my emphases added. Square brackets [ ] indicate meanings of words. King James Version Easy-Reading Bible (KJVER)2 used.)

Matthew 24:1,2 And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and His disciples came to Him for to show him the buildings of the temple.  2 And Jesus said to them, See you not all these things? verily I say to you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down. (All bold are emphases added)

Here Christ predicts the destruction of the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem, around which all Jewish life revolved. This was fulfilled exactly in 70 A.D., which is 40 years after His death on the Cross and is within what we could call the generation of those He was speaking to—His disciples.

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Bible prophecy The Papacy worldview

Daniel 9 prophecy

Chapter 9 in the book of Daniel continues the record of history, and the dreams, visions and revelations that God gave through His prophet. This chapter covers a period under the rule of Darius the Mede who conquered Babylon.  (All bold are my emphases added. Square brackets [ ] indicate meanings of words. King James Version Easy-Reading Bible (KJVER) used.)

Daniel 9:1 In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus [538 B.C.], of the seed of the Medes, which was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans;

God told Jeremiah that the nation of Judah (the kingdom of Israel had already been conquered due to their idolatry) would be taken into captured by the Babylonians (Chaldeans) and taken into captivity for 70 years (Jeremiah 25:11) after which God would restore them and return them to Jerusalem (Jeremiah 29:10). Daniel was living in exile and I suppose it was only natural to want to know when the exile would end. God enlightened him through divine knowledge but it was a lot more than just an answer to that simple question.

Daniel 9:2 In the first year of his reign I Daniel understood by books the number of the years, whereof the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah the prophet, that He would accomplish seventy years in the desolations [ruin] of Jerusalem.

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Biblical morality Decay of society God's sovereignty History Islam

The Lord will overcome

 IslamDominateSignBeard-vihate-speech-islam

The rise of Islam in the West

I see this as the Lord’s doing, the same way He sent the Babylonians to carry away Israel into captivity (Jeremiah 29:1-14) or the way He used the Assyrians (Isaiah 10:5)  to chastise Israel for her sins. This time the chastisement is to the Christian Church (spiritually Israel) and again to the chosen people, the Jews, wherever they may be. I believe the Lord  Jesus will come again and restore His assembly of believers, whether they be Jews or Gentiles. And the Lord will Himself judge those who disobey His laws and murder innocent people.

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