Hear, Understand, Obey

when Abram was 99 years old

January 28 2012

this is the power point for the service in 1/28/12.

impatience breeds Ishmael

January 21 2012

but I have no heir

January 14 2012

Lot goes one way and Abram goes another

January 7 2012

On Abraham’s righteousness and ours

December 31 2011

the generations of Noah

December 13 2011
My big apologies for the wrong dating on the link LOL. Here is the message recording, though .

This pdf contains a list of the genealogy of Noah’s sons and the areas of the world they are understood to have inhabited. We will be going through this during part of the service.

What about Matthew 24?

The Messianic position, which I hold to even more the more I study it out, is that there are two separate questions and two different times they are talking about. Half applied in 70AD and the other half is speaking to the End of Days. This is consistent with how the prophetic books are generally divided in the OT.

One interesting thing to study in the OT prophets is that the first half of their book generally applies to their generation. In this section the word “et” or “aleph tav” is not found (“et” or “aleph tav” would be the Hebrew for what in Greek would be Alpha Omega and what Jesus said He is — the one Hebrew word that the Rabbi’s to this day do not know how to translate). At some point in the writing there is a switch. Often it is marked by “in the end of days” or “at the end of the age” or “in the day of the Lord” and suddenly there is “et” all over the place. What I’m realizing is that the “future future” prophecies are best understood in light of the meaning of the “current generation” prophecies.

so when I read Matthew 24 I read:

1 Jesus left the temple and was going away, when his disciples came to point out to him the buildings of the temple. 2 But he answered them, “You see all these, do you not? Truly, I say to you, there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.”

This is a conversation that is had as they are leaving the Temple. They are talking about the Temple and he warns them of its impending destruction.

3 As he sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately,

This is a NEW and DIFFERENT conversation. They are no longer “leaving the Temple” as they are sitting on the Mount of Olives.

saying, “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the close of the age?”

In the OT Prophets this phrase “the close of the age” is akin to “the End of Days” and as they are asking about the sign of him “coming” when he is sitting right there, it must speak to a future coming. You don’t ask someone who is sitting with you when he will come –he is there. You might ask him when he will come again so that you can be ready for his arrival.

4 And Jesus answered them, “See that no one leads you astray. 5 For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray.

The first aspect of His response is to tell them not to listen to anyone who tells them the Messiah has already come or claims to be the Messiah! He says that those who tell them such things are leading people astray.

6 And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for this must take place, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are but the beginning of the birth pains.

These are things that will take place between when he is speaking to them and the end of days. I believe this comes after the previous verse because he’s warning them that over the generations there will be lots of awful things that happen that people will believe need Messiah to show up and “fix”. And we’ve seen this. Lots of people have foretold that Messiah would come here or there, or at this time (or this new time, or, wait, no, this new time ). So he’s telling them here, “It’s going to get bad. Lots of bad things are going to happen.” And they are happening.

9 “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake.

I believe this is spoken to them as the representatives of God’s people. Specifically the nation of Israel which has been hated by all nations in various ways and both individuals who are part of Israel by birth and those who have attached themselves to Israel (which Paul speaks of as being grafted in through faith in Messiah) have experienced these things. Sometimes it’s on a small scale, sometimes on a large scale. I believe the things that happened to the Apostles at their times of death are included in this, the events surrounding the destruction of the Temple and the diaspora, the Holocaust, and many things that continue to this day.

10 And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. 11 And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray.

And, again, his reason for telling them things will get very hard is because they are being told to watch for and avoid false prophets. Since we are living in the “future” of this prophetic Word, I believe the point to us is that things are and will continue to be hard and if our focus is on the question they asked “How can we know you’re about to return?” that we are to be careful about seeking too specific of signs for this event.

I do believe there are other prophecies that speak to issues of His return and what we can be aware of, but I believe His point is that it’s not just about it being bad. And we aren’t to listen to those who want to tell us with too much detail or too fine of a point that He’s already come or that he’s over here or over there.

12 And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. 13 But the one who endures to the end will be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.

This is consistent with the idea that Paul puts forth many times about enduring to the end. It speaks to our faithfulness to the True Messiah, to trusting Him as we endure hardship and not having a fickle attitude that we’ll trust Him in the good times but if things get hard, I’m outta here (or He better step in and fix it all).

15 “So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand),

This is a VERY fascinating and specific reference that I’ve spent a considerable time studying this last year and eventually had to step into studying some other things as I’m trying to see the bigger picture. What I can share about this is the following:

1) The abomination of desolation, I believe, is NOT about *a* person. It is about worshiping according to Torah being made illegal and the Temple being desecrated. It is about the effort to bring desolation to the Worshipers of God through outlawing (and punishing by death) those who follow God’s commands about how to worship Him.

2) DANIEL said there would be “a time that is not the time; a second time that is not the time; and then the time that is the time.”

3) This passage comes from the chapter in Daniel that foretells, among other things, the events celebrated at Hanukkah. (Daniel 11 up to verse 28) This includes the destruction of the Temple (Hanukkah being the celebration of its rededication) and the laws that were made at that time in an effort to Hellenize the Jewish people through making it punishable by death to read Torah, celebrate the New Moon or in any way track the Biblical calendar, eat kosher, circumcise their sons to set them apart among the other nations. These things became punishable by death under Antiochus.

4) Daniel then speaks of (in verse 29)

“At the time appointed he shall return and come into the south, but it shall not be this time as it was before.

and verses 31 and 32 explain that

Forces from him shall appear and profane the temple and fortress, and shall take away the regular burnt offering. And they shall set up the abomination that makes desolate.

At this future time that is not the time in Daniel this shall occur and

He shall seduce with flattery those who violate the covenant, but the people who know their God shall stand firm and take action.

And this will be part of this “time” (vs 33)

And the wise among the people shall make many understand, though for some days they shall stumble by sword and flame, by captivity and plunder.

There’s more there but this is important, I believe, for being able to understand what Jesus says next:

***This is where I want to jump back into the text but the list isn’t complete–I’ll get back to it

16 then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. 17 Let the one who is on the housetop not go down to take what is in his house, 18 and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak. 19 And alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! 20 Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a Sabbath. 21 For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. 22 And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short. 23 Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. 24 For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. 25 See, I have told you beforehand. 26 So, if they say to you, ‘Look, he is in the wilderness,’ do not go out. If they say, ‘Look, he is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. 27 For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 28 Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.

I believe this is the specific part of this prophecy that speaks to the generation to which He was speaking. He is warning them that they will experience an “abomination of desolation” in their day. And they did. Part of the whole cultural shift involved with the destruction of the Temple in their day was that it became illegal on penalty of death to eat kosher, study Torah, celebrate the new moon and the Feasts and Festivals or in any way keep track of or keep God’s calendar.

But Daniel says this in vs 35

and some of the wise shall stumble, so that they may be refined, purified, and made white, until the time of the end, for it still awaits the appointed time.

to tell the reader that this time (of which both Daniel and Jesus speak) is not *the time of the end* for that is still awaited when these things occur.

Jesus goes on in Matthew 24:

29 “Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.

the phrase “the sun will be darkened and the moon will not give it’s light and the stars will fall from heaven” is a reference to both Isaiah 13:10 and Ezekiel 32:7. When the sun, moon and stars are referenced together in this way we can learn from Joseph’s dream about the sun, moon and stars and know that this speaks of Israel in relationship to Messiah. Immediately after the events of 70AD, as the Israelites were scattered in the diaspora, we see that this prophecy was fulfilled.

30 Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31 And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

Because this doesn’t start with “immediately” (which Matthew really liked to use any chance he got ) and because the chapter/verse numbers were added later, we do not have to so tightly attach this verse to the previous one. At some point after what we just read about Israel being scattered this will occur.

Many in Messianic circles believe that the trumpet call speaks to the Jewish people returning to Israel and thus the sign of the Son of Man is the creation of the state of Israel. In other words, the previous verse speaks of the nation being scattered and this speaks to the great sign that is the initiation of their return to the Land. I’m comfortable with that interpretation, but not married to it. One reason I’m comfortable with it is what comes next:

32 “From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near. 33 So also, when you see all these things, you know that he is near, at the very gates. 34 Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place. 35 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.

The fig tree in prophecies speaks to the Nation or State of Israel in the Land. This passage is understood to be saying that the generation that is alive when *this* occurs–the restoration of the Nation of Israel–will not pass away until these things take place. And what a beautiful encouragement to remind us of His promises to never abandon Israel and the assurance that He has not rejected them in all of this! The entirety of His Word will not pass away!

“But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, [fn2] but the Father only.

But I’m not going to try to predict a date. I’m just going to live ready. And there’s a caution against trying to pin it all down to a specific date (and even though I believe that the “season” and prophetic date of His return will be on Rosh Hashanah, the calendar is off and everyone knows it. Even attempts to celebrate based on the moon in Israel cannot know for certain what year it is — they have a best guess).

I also believe this is Jesus referencing (if you go back to the list I was numbering above) the “time that is the time” that is the third time that Daniel spoke of. It is the final time. It is the completion of that prophecy in Daniel.

There is a lot more going on in Daniel that gives us specifics about “who” and “what” but ultimately it’s about an ongoing battle between Egypt and Babylon (and there’s a LOT there but ultimately Babylon is linked in these prophecies with Greece and Rome — who brought the first two abominations of desolation and the destructions of the Temples).

For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 38 For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, 39 and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 40 Then two men will be in the field; one will be taken and one left. 41 Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken and one left. 42 Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. 43 But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.

“In the days of Noah” it was the evil who were taken away and Noah and his family who were “left behind” and in Hebrew the ONLY word translated as “left behind” only ever speaks about the Righteous.

This passage has been used for generations to terrify believers and yet it’s a promise for our comfort and peace. The only caution is to NOT be living among the wicked and to always live as one who is ready for Messiah to return! That this passage has been used to make people who love Him fear His return is heartbreaking to me!

This next section is, I believe, a warning to the disciples who were about to be the heads of the Messianic community, but also to all of those who are in a position of leadership in the community of faith in every generation between the speaking of these words and their fulfillment–and even to everyone who aligns themselves with Messiah:

“Who then is the faithful and wise servant, [fn3] whom his master has set over his household, to give them their food at the proper time? 46 Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. 47 Truly, I say to you, he will set him over all his possessions. 48 But if that wicked servant says to himself, ‘My master is delayed,’ 49 and begins to beat his fellow servants [fn4] and eats and drinks with drunkards, 50 the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know 51 and will cut him in pieces and put him with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

So as we live in the period that is after the first time that was not the time (under Antiochus) and the second time that was not the time (under Rome), I believe it is safe to trust that we are in the time that is the time. Obviously both of those “periods” of time were lengthy and included many generations — as has this “time”. Yet we have seen Israel both scattered to the winds and restored as a nation. If Jesus’ words assure us that the generation alive at the time Israel is restored as the Fig Tree (as a nation) then those who are alive today should most assuredly heed the rest of Messiah’s words in this prophecy. We must live every day as though He may return today. We must hold fast to His Word and His promises and His assurances that He is with us always — even to the end of the age. And we must place our hope in Him for the end times are nothing to fear for those who are righteous.