The Biblical Examiner
An Examination of Biblical Precepts Involved in Issues at Hand |
All articles by Bro Need unless otherwise noted
Bush & Co. is determined to start a war in the Middle East.
There are Christians excited to see the prospects of such a war,
for it means to them that the final battle may be at hand, and
the Lord will come back, exalt them to the place of importance,
and He will rule the unsaved with a rod of iron.
The fire of Millennium fever is gripping the nation, fanned by
national Israel (who sees the "Christian right" as its
ticket to America's purse strings, as well as military protection),
speakers who seem to be on national Israel's payroll, and authors
who have found a way to "break the bank," and all at
the expense of the blood bought church of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The water of the word of God needs to be applied, and the attention
of the Christian public redirected to the truth of God's word.
There will be a payday someday for the deceitful workers and those
who have been willingly misled in this very critical area.
I know folks tire of my "harping" on the "Israel"
subject, and I weary of developing the same thing over and over.
I know that I tire of hearing "Christian" speakers and
authors "harping" on the "Israel" subject,
but it seems that people love to hear radio speakers and book
salesmen "harp" on the issue, particularly as the prospects
of war in the Middle East seems certain. Those authors and speakers
seem to be hoping for such a war in which millions of "Jews"
are killed, for, in their view of "Bible Prophecy,"
such a war means that the end of this dispensation is near, and
Christ will come back, sit on David's throne in Jerusalem, and
bring all nations under subjection to national Israel, as it was
under David and Solomon. Moreover, the heightened tensions in
that area mean more books to write and sell, and more money for
the promoters of Millennialism there is money in Millennialism.
(See Trail of Delusion in this issue.)
I tire of the Jewish Fever that grips so many churches. I fully
understand why God totally destroyed the old Hebrew economy and
manner of worship. Many churches and Christians today seem to
be wandering (Rev. 17:8) after the old beast that was destroyed
back then as they invite "Jews" to show them the old
manners of antichristian Jewish worship. The Jewish worship was
thoroughly condemned by the authors of the New Testament, and
then destroyed by God Himself when He sent Rome against Jerusalem.
If God had not destroyed Judaism, the church would be even more
overrun with the old wine skins of that antichrist religion. Is
it any wonder that the antichristian sentiment is so strong in
the civil government when it is so strong in the churches who
exalt the antichristian Jews?
Tiring of the Millennial Fever that grips most "Christian"
radio stations, I listen primarily to NPR. But while listening
to "Christian" radio, I heard the following just in
the month of August:
8/6/02, Marlin Maddox interviewed a man who was supporting "Israel"
the man quoted Genesis 12:3, I will bless them that bless Israel,
and curse him that curse Israel. (See below. He misquoted
the verse, yet Maddox did not correct him, probably because his
profitable books reflect the same misquote.)
8/18/02, (a Sunday morning) while walking, I heard probably the
best "pro Israel" messages ever. John Hagee, out of
Texas, moved a great crowdprobably thousands, though I
could not see them over the radiowith a very strong and persuasive
message. His message sounded like it was written by the Israeli
Ministry of Tourism or the Ministry of Foreign Affaires.
He called today's Jews (not Old Testament Israel) God's
firstborn, e.g., Exodus 4:22, Hosea 11:1, Romans 9:4. (See
firstborn below under "Problem Three.") He skillfully
took many verses belonging to the Gospel Church, and gave them
to the antichrist Jews who now live in Palestine. (See
1 John 2:22.) He mocked what he called, Replacement Theologythat
is, that the Gospel Church replaced Old Testament Israel, and
that it is the New Israel of God (Galatians 6:16). He substituted
the word Jew where the word Israel is used in Scripture,
applying to the followers of the modern antichrist Jewish religion
the promises that once belonged to Old Testament Israel and now
belong to the Gospel Church of the firstborn. He taught that the
Christ hating Jews of our day are the heirs to the promises given
to Abraham, and thus made the blessings of God dependent upon
race (there is no traceable evidence of a Hebrew race, though
they do existonly God knows who they are). Whoever wrote Mr. Hagee's
message knew what key passages, such as Genesis 12:3, to use to
get the multitude of people to raise their hands, pray, and swear
allegiance to that pagan nation called Israel over in Palestine.
He persuaded thousands to confess any Anti-Semitism, and
to promise to stop such ideas. He skillfully moved his hearers
to Darby's modern dispensational theology. (According to The
Protection Project, an international anti-trafficking effort
based in Washington, "About 10,000 women from the former
Soviet Union were forced into prostitution in Israel. World,
5/15/02, p. 30. Yet the promoters of modern Israel tell how
God is the one who has established that nation. There is money
in Millennialism!)
Several times, Hagee said that Christ would return, sit on the
throne of David and rule with his rod of Iron. He said it with
great enthusiasm, and the crowd applauded. But note the hidden
messageit does no good to stand for Christ and Godly order now,
for only when Christ comes back will there be any chance of godly
law and order. The only thing we can do now, according to his
message, is "pray for the peace" of pagan Jerusalem
(not the New Jerusalem, the church that is suffering at the hands
of the pagans world-wide), support pagan Israel with our money
and military might, and stand against any Anti-Semitism.
[DR. FALWELL, IS HAGEE NO LONGER A HERETIC?We have a copy of Jerry Falwell's May 6, 1994 The Liberty Flame (now defunct?), with the front page headline "John Hagee: Heretic?" We now see the same John Hagee pictured and listed on page 2 of Jerry Falwell's July 2002 National Liberty Journal to bring a Patriotic Message for Falwell's Independence Day Celebration (July 3). Is Hagee no longer a heretic, as the 1994 article quoted Paige Patterson and newspapers as suggesting? The main problem was Hagee's "Two Covenant" belief (see 6/15/94 CC ). If he no longer believes it, or was misquoted, he should explain his belief. The 1994 article said in 1975 Hagee resigned as pastor of a charismatic church saying his marriage was over and he had become "immoral" in personal conduct. He became pastor of Cornerstone Church (San Antonio) and remarried in 1975. His Web site July 2002 listed a "Cornerstone Fourth of July Camp meeting featuring "Pastor Hagee and his guests, Bishop T.D. Jakes, John Maxwell, Jesse Duplantis." Jakes and Duplantis are charismatics. Jakes was recently accused of being a "Oneness Pentecostal," which denies the Trinity.(Calvary Contender.)]
8/27/02, returning home from having to pick up a car that broke down 2 ½ hours away (a hole rubbed in an oil line, and we had to leave it to have the line replaced), I was again listening to Marlin Maddox as he interviewed Hal Lindsay. Lindsay was promoting his latest book. Millennialism makes money just ask Maddox, Lindsay, Lahaye and the many other writers who have discovered the pot of gold from gullible Christians who love false doctrine and fairy tales. Maddox's program was almost identical to the last time I heard him. These Millennialists seem to all be on the payroll of Israel as they urge Christians to support national Israel, though the spirit of antichrist reigns there, in the war they see coming between the Jews and Arabs. Maddox and Lindsay rehashed the same old theme, "I, the God of the Bible, will bless those who bless national Israel, and curse those who curse Israel." (See under "Problem Two" below.)
All the "saber rattling" is not over the "bad
guy," Saddam Hussein. Follow the money, and it will lead
to oil. Iraq has the largest proven reserves of crude oil
in the world, second only to Saudi Arabia. Though Bush & Co.
deny that the issue is oil, oil companies from around the world
have started "carving up" Iraq for development after
Hussein is removed by America. The promises being made by Bush
& Co., is that the nations, such as France and Russia, who
join in ousting Hussein will get part of the pie. The oil deals
are not actually being made with Bush & Co.; rather, the deals
are being sought with the Iraqi National Congress (INC), and umbrella
organization of opposition groups that is backed by the United
States. INC favors a U.S. led consortium to develop Iraq's oil
fields: "American companies will have a big shot at Iraqi
oil." In fact, such a deal in Iraq could break OPEC's hold
on oil prices, as Iraqi oil floods the market. Though Bush &
Co. (Cheney) has strong ties with big oil, he is denying that
oil is being considered "in a substantive way." However,
there was an October meeting in Houston where more than 100 American
and Russian oil company representatives met. Iraq owes Russia
7-8 billion, so the Russian leaders will probably support U.S.
actions with assurances that they "will be made whole"
financially. "There's not an oil company out there that wouldn't
be interested in Iraq," one analyst said. (The Washington
Post, Sunday, 9/15/02. Mr. Big Oil himself, Mr. Cheney, is
the one pushing for war with Iraq, Newsweek, 9/16/02. The
war in Afghanistan was to install a new government that would
permit big oil to build a pipeline. I am not against "big
oil," but I am against Americas fighting and dying to finance
"big oil.")
It appears that there would be a "war" to take control
of that oil regardless of who is in the White House; moreover,
there will be such a "war" regardless of what the UN
does, or what Hussein does. There will be an excuse to take the
oil that will satisfy the American people without having to open
our abundant supply in the Gulf and in Alaska.
Notice that Bush & Co. has not been excited that North Korea,
which is still officially at war with South Korea, has "weapons
of mass destruction," and has killed multitudes of its people
through starvation. In fact, it seems that we are financing North
Korea so it can develop those weapons. Nor has Bush & Co.
expressed concern about the multitudes of Christians in southern
Sudan, and world-wide, who have been and are being killed by the
Muslims. (New high-tech Russian MIG29s are being used by the Islamic
Sudan's air force to stop all mercy efforts in southern Sudan,
and to bomb civilians, particularly Christians and Christian relief
ministries. World, 10/12/02. Why has not Bush & Co.
threatened the "bad guy" who is on that murdering rampage?)
From what little I listen to Limbaugh, he continues to say, "It
will happen." That is, Bush & Co. will go into Iraq.
I have no doubt that he will, for there is a great amount of oil
money involved.
As in "Desert Storm," an invasion of Iraq will lead
to Iraq shooting at Israel. And the followers of C.I. Scofield
will be excited at the prospects of many killed in the "crisis
in Jerusalem." (See Israel-First Millennialists are Sending
Jews to their Death in Palestine, in this issue.)
The war that will be started by Bush & Co. oil interests will
probably divide the world into three parts: "Christian"
nations, e.g., Spain, France, Portugal, Britain, Italy,
Germany, Poland, Russia, &c., Muslim nations, e.g.,
Iraq, Iran, Pakistan, Egypt, &c., and various other nations
that do not have a large Muslim population. The dangerous part
is that the Muslims have infiltrated into every nation, and they
will count it a privilege and a ticket to paradise to kill even
one person in the name of their religion. (We think the "Cereal
Sniper" is bad! Multiply that by many times if the followers
of Mohammedan follow the urgings of their clerics. I understand
that not one Muslim cleric has condemned the "terrorist"
actions of other Muslims.) The time is approaching when the US
will have to unite with Russia and other traditional enemies in
order to stand against the Muslim hoards, whose religion demands
that they subdue the whole world through force of arms.
I have found that one of the favorite passages for creating
profitable excitement about the Lord's very soon return is Matthew
24. (See my study on Matthew 24 and its context. It is posted
in a PDF file, or contact us for a hard copy.)
Scofield says of v. 11:
Cf. # Lu 21:20-24. The passage in Luke refers in express terms to a destruction of Jerusalem which was fulfilled by Titus, A.D. 70; the passage in Matthew to a future crisis in Jerusalem after the manifestation of the abomination. See "Beast" # Da 7:8 Re 19:20 and "Armageddon" # Re 16:14 19:17.
As the circumstances in both cases will be similar, so are the warnings. In the former case Jerusalem was destroyed; in the latter it will be delivered by divine interposition. (Online Bible.)
In other words, according to Darby's dispensationalism, though
Luke spoke of A.D. 70, Matthew speaks of "a future crisis
in Jerusalem." Accordingly, any thought of a crisis in Jerusalem
in which multitudes are killed, such as an all out war in the
Middle East, excites the prognosticators, sells many books and
videos and gets many speaking engagements for those prognosticators.
According to George Peter Holford, (1805), those who take the
Lord's words which He spoke in Matthew 24 and make them yet to
be fulfilled (and thus they justify and even look forward to a
prosperous city of Jerusalem and rebuilt temple), are attacking
and undermining the Word of Godthey are seeking to invalidate
our Lord's words. Any doctrine that attempts to place Matthew
24 yet in the future is thus the doctrine of the antichrist.
Admittedly, Mr. Holford treats the "Jews" as a distinct
race of people rather than in the Biblical sense that "Jews"
are simply the followers of the Jewish religion. (See under "Jews,
a distinct people" below.) Note that those who hold on to
the idea that the Jews are a race of people avoid the truth of
the matter Biblical Jews were basically Hebrews and the children
of the man Jacob, though there were many non-Hebrews [non-children
of Israel] brought into the Israelite nation. Mr. Holford states:
The history of the Jews, subsequent to the time of Josephus, still
further corroborates the truth of our Savior's prophecies concerning
that oppressed and persecuted people. Into this inquiry, however,
the limits of the present essay will not allow us to enter particularly.
Our Lord foretold, generally, that they should "fall by
the edge of the sword, and be led away captive into all nations;
and that Jerusalem should be trodden down of the Gentiles, until
the times of the Gentiles should be fulfilled," (Luke
21:24) and these predictions may be regarded as a faithful epitome
of the circumstances of the Jews and also of their city, from
the period in which it was delivered down even to our own times.
In order to demonstrate the accomplishment of these predictions, we appeal, therefore, to universal history and to every country under heaven.10 The undisputed facts are that Jerusalem has not since been in possession of the Jews but has been successively occupied by the Romans, Arabic Saracens, Franks, Mamelucs, and lastly by the Turks, who now possess it. It has never regained its former distinction and prosperity. It has always been trodden down. The eagles of idolatrous Rome, the crescent of Mahomet and the banner of Popery have by turns been displayed amidst the ruins of the sanctuary; and a Mahomedan mosque, to the extent of a mile in circumference, now covers the spot where the temple formerly stood. The territory of Judea, then one of the most fertile countries on the globe, has for more than 1,700 years continued a desolate waste. The Jews themselves, still miraculously preserved a distinct people, are, as we see, scattered over the whole earth, invigorating the faith of the Christian, flashing conviction in the face of the infidel and constituting an universal, permanent and invincible evidence of the truth of Christianity. (See Note 1 below.)
In order to invalidate this evidence, the apostate emperor Julian, impelled by a spirit of enmity against the Christians, about A.D. 363, made an attempt to rebuild the city and temple of Jerusalem and to recall the Jews to their own country. He assigned immense sums for the execution of this great design and commanded Alypius of Antioch (who had formerly served as a lieutenant in Britain) to superintend the work and the governor of the province to assist him therein. But (says Ammianus Iarcellinus) "whilst they urged with vigor and diligence the execution of the work, horrible balls of fire, breaking out near the foundation with frequent and reiterated attacks, rendered the place, from time to time, inaccessible to the scorched and blasted workmen; and the victorious element continuing in this manner obstinately and resolutely bent, as it were, to drive them to a distance, the undertaking was abandoned." Speaking of this event, even Gibbon, who is notorious for his skepticism, acknowledges that "an earthquake, a whirlwind, and a fiery eruption, which overturned and scattered the new foundations of the Temple, are attested, with some variations, by contemporary and respectable evidence, by Ambrose, Bishop of Milan, Chrysostom and Gregory Nazianzen, the latter of whom published his account before the expiration of the same year." To these may be added the names of Zemuch David, a Jew (who confesses that "Julian was hindered by God in the attempt"), of Ruffinus, a Latin, of Theodoret and Sozomen among the orthodox, of Philostorgius, an Anan, and of Socrates, a favorer of the Novatians, who all recorded the same wonderful interposition of Providence, while the eyewitnesses of the facts were yet living. The words of Sozomen to this purport are remarkable: "If it yet seem incredible (says he) to anyone, he may repair both to witnesses of it yet living, and to them who have heard it from their mouths; yea, they may view the foundations, lying yet bare and naked." Besides, it may be added, that no other reason has ever been alleged why Julian should abandon his magnificent but impious design. (See Note 2 below.)
Thus was this celebrated emperor "taken in his own craftiness," and his presumptuous attempt to frustrate the plans and falsify the declarations of infinite omnipotence and wisdom converted into a new and striking evidence of their certainty and truth.* (*This subject is discussed at length with singular ingenuity and force of argument, by the learned Bishop Warbarton, in his work entitled Julian.)
10 "In the reign of Adrian," says Bishop Newton, "985 of their best towns were sacked and demolished, 580,000 men fell by the sword, in battle, besides an infinite multitude who perished by famine, and sickness, and fire; so that Judea was depopulated, and an almost incredible number of every age and of each sex, were sold like horses and dispersed over the face of the earth" (Newton, vol. 2, Diss. 23). The war which gave rise to these calamities happened about 64 years after the destruction of Jerusalem, during which time the Jews had greatly multiplied in Judea. About 50 years after the latter event, Ælius Adrian built a new city on Mount Calvary and called it Aelia, after his own name; but no Jew was suffered to come near it. He placed in it a heathen colony and erected a temple to Jupiter Capitolinus on the ruins of the temple of Jehovah. This event contributed greatly to provoke the sanguinary war to which we have just alluded. The Jews afterwards burned the new city; Adrian, however, rebuilt and reestablished the colony. In contempt of the Jews, he ordered a marble statue of a sow to be placed over its principal gate, prohibited them entering the city under pain of death, and forbade them even to look at it from a distance. He also ordered fairs to be held annually for the sale of captive Jews and banished such as dwelt in Canaan into Egypt. Constantine greatly improved the city and restored to it the name of Jerusalem, but still he did not permit the Jews to dwell there. To punish an attempt to recover the possession of their capital, he ordered their ears to be cut off, their bodies to be marked as rebels, and dispersed them through all the provinces of the empire as vagabonds and slaves. Jovian having revived the severe edicts of Adrian, which Julian had suspended, the wretched Jews even bribed the soldiers with money for the privilege only of beholding the sacred ruins of their city and temple, and weeping over them, which they were peculiarly solicitous to do on the anniversary of that memorable day on which they were taken and destroyed by the Romans. In short, during every successive age and in all nations, this ill-fated people have been constantly persecuted, enslaved, condemned, harassed, and oppressed, banished from one country to another, and abused in all; while countless multitudes have, at different periods, been barbarously massacred, particularly in Persia, Syria, Palestine and Egypt; and in Germany, Hungary, France and Spain.
George Peter Holford, The Destruction of Jerusalem, an absolute and irresistible proof of the divine origin of Christianity. Pp 47-50. 1805. (The Destruction of Jerusalem by Peter Holford, 69 pg paper back. This book can be ordered from The Biblical Examiner, $6.00, plus $1.00 postage.)
Mr. Holford tells us that a sure proof of Christ's words is
the fact that the "Jews" remained scattered world-wide,
with no "homeland." Scripturally, the "regathering"
is to be around Christ, not around a literal land and a carnal
nationChrist died for the elect, not for a particular "race"
(religion) nor a particular spot of real estate in the Middle
East. Thus, national Israel claiming to be the Israel of God's
promise is an attack against God, against His word and against
Christ. Over the years, the pagans attempted to invalidate Christ's
words as they tried to rebuild Jerusalem and resettle it with
"Jews." Where the pagans of the past failed, the pagans
of the present succeeded through the UN, and an antichrist finds
its support and finances from gullible Christians whose emotions
are whipped up by men like John Hagee. (See Regathering below.)
Moreover, the prophecy that was confirmed by the destruction of
the "Jewish" (or Hebrew) race is found throughout the
prophets, and is first mentioned in Deuteronomy:
The LORD shall bring a nation against thee from far, from the end of the earth, [as swift] as the eagle flieth; a nation whose tongue thou shalt not understand; A nation of fierce countenance, which shall not regard the person of the old, nor shew favour to the young: (Deuteronomy 28:49-50 AV)
Mr. Holford agrees with what Matthew Henry (1662-1714) said over 100 years previous. Both are quite contrary to Scofield and modern prophetic speculations that say Matthew 24 is yet to be fulfilled:
... here, in this latter part, he foretells their last destruction by the Romans and their dispersion thereupon. And the present deplorable state of the Jewish nation, and of all that have incorporated themselves with them, by embracing their religion, does so fully and exactly answer to the prediction in these verses that it serves for an incontestable proof of the truth of prophecy, and consequently of the divine authority of the scripture. And, this last destruction being here represented as more dreadful than the former, it shows that their sin, in rejecting Christ and his gospel, was more heinous and more provoking to God than idolatry itself, and left them more under the power of Satan; for their captivity in Babylon cured them effectually of their idolatry in seventy years' time; but under this last destruction now for above 1600 years they continue incurably averse to the Lord Jesus. Observe, ...
II. How the destruction threatened is described. Moses is here upon the same melancholy subject that our Saviour is discoursing of to his disciples in his farewell sermon (Matthew 24), namely, The destruction of Jerusalem and the Jewish nation. ... (Matthew Henry on Deut. 28:45. Emp. added. The rest of his comment concerning this passage is well worth reading. His complete commentary, along with 21 others, is on Online Bible, CD, available from us.)
Thus Matthew Henry points out that the dispersion of the "Jews" proves the validity of the Old Testament curse against the then "chosen" nation that turned its back upon the Lord God.
Neither Scripture, history, nor modern
facts will support the idea that the "Jews are a distinct
people." Rather, it requires that Jews are the followers
of the Jewish religion. It was the followers of that apostate
religion who put Christ to death, and who suffered the wrath of
God in 70 AD. Proof all who forsook that religion and
followed Christ were spared God's wrath. God's wrath was against
the Jewish system of faith, not against the "Jewish"
race of people, for a great many "Jews" avoided the
destruction through faith in Christ.
In Acts chapter two, Peter warned the very ones who had part in
Christ's death that Christ was NOW seated in the place of all
power, and that He would soon return to avenge His murder. He
also told the people they could avoid the coming judgment through
repentance and faith. About 3,000 turned their back on Judaism,
and became Christians, and thereby avoided the judgment. (At a
later time, I will offer a short study in Acts of how many times
the "Jews" were warned of the coming destruction of
their nation, capital and their religion. ) As we have developed
elsewhere, there can be no such thing as a "Jewish Christian"
any more than there can be a "Muslim Christian," for
the basis of the Jews' religion is rejection of Christ. (Gal.
1:13, 14.)
After this disaster had befallen Cestius, the more opulent of the Jews (says Josephus) forsook Jerusalem as men do a sinking ship. And it is with reason supposed that on this occasion many of the Christians, or converted Jews, who dwelt there, recollecting the warnings of their divine Master, retired to Pella, a place beyond Jordan, situated in a mountainous country, (Matt. 24:16-22) whither (according to Eusebius, who resided near the spot) they came from Jerusalem and settled before the war under Vespasian began. Other providential opportunities for escaping afterwards occurred, of which, it is probable, those who were now left behind availed themselves; for it is a striking fact, and as such cannot be contemplated by the pious mind without sentiments of devout admiration, that history does not record that even one Christian perished in the siege of Jerusalem. Enduring to the end, faithful to their blessed master, they gave full credit to His predictions and escaped the calamity. Thus were fulfilled the words of our Lord, "He that shall endure unto the end (i.e., of the scene of this prophecy) shall be saved" (Matt. 24:13), i.e., from the calamities which will involve all those who shall continue obstinate in unbelief. (Destruction, pp. 25, 26.)
Moreover, all who were genuine Jews
according to their lineage were actually Hebrews. Anyone could
become a Jew, which was the major problem in the New Testament.
All of the apostles had to contend with the Judaizers who wanted
the Gentiles to become Jews (be circumcised) in order to "properly"
follow Christ. Acts 15:1, 24. However, no amount of ritualism
could make one a Hebrew. (Remember, some years ago, Sammy Davis
Jr., a black entertainer, converted from Gentile to Jew, but he
sure did not become a Hebrew. However, both Ishmael and Esau were
Hebrews, children of Abraham the Hebrew.)
Paul did not identify himself as a Jew in Philippians 3:4ff. On
the other hand, he did identify himself with the Jews in his life
before his conversion, Acts 22:3. Moreover, he reminded the Jews
that they knew how zealous he had been for the Jews' religion
at that time, Acts 26:4. He also points out that he had been
very involved in the Jews' religion before his conversion,
and that religion had been profitable to him, Galatians 1:13,
14.
All of that to say this: Paul did not claim to be a "Jewish
Christian," for conversion separated him from the Jews. However,
he did make it clear that he was a "Hebrew Christian."
There can be no such thing as a "Jewish Christian,"
or Paul would have continued to carry the title of "Jew"
after his conversion. He does, however, carry the title of Jew
in the New Testament sense that is, the New Testament Jews are
those who are in Christ, regardless of their backgrounds (ground
that I have already plowed in other studies).
Note the point here Julian sought to "invalidate this evidence", that is, invalidate the proof of the truth of the passages that dispersed and destroyed the old "Jewish nation" because of its sin against the commandments of God. How did he seek to do it? By rebuilding Jerusalem, rebuilding the temple and populating the new city with "Jews." He spent vast sums of money to void the word of God, all to no avail. Many others also tried to void the word of God by rebuilding Jerusalem, rebuilding the temple and populating the new city with "Jews", but God supernaturally intervened to thwart their antiGod efforts. But the antichristian group, the UN, was able to do what these other ungodly men were hindered from doing that is, authorize the rebuilding and protect the rebuilders. Sadly, the Christians of our day are also supportive of this destruction of the word of God as pointed out by Mr. Holford:
Thus we perceive that the very objections which infidelity opposes to our argument, instead of invalidating, tend only more fully to illustrate and confirm it. And such, indeed, must always be the happy effects of that hostility which is directed against the evidences of the Christian faith since the more carefully and attentively we examine the foundations upon which it rests, the more perfectly must we be convinced of the immovable stability of the superstructure. Of that evidence, the prophecy which we have reviewed (pass away before all these things were fulfilled, Matt. 24:34, ed.) most certainly constitutes a very striking and prominent part; from every light and position in which it can be contemplated, it constantly derives new luster and effect; and it may safely be considered "as an unquestionable proof of the divine foreknowledge of our Lord and the divine authority of the gospel; and on this ground only, were it necessary, we might securely rest the whole fabric of our religion. Indeed, this remarkable prediction has always been considered, by every impartial person, as one of the most powerful arguments in favor of Christianity; and in our own times, more particularly, a man of distinguished talents and acknowledged eminence in his profession, and in the constant habit of weighing, sifting and scrutinizing evidence with the minutest accuracy in courts of justice, has publicly declared that he considered this prophecy, if there were nothing else to support Christianity, as absolutely irresistible." (FN: See the Bishop of London's "Lectures on the Gospel of St. Matthew" and Mr. Erskine's eloquent speech at the trial of Williams for publishing Paine's Age of Reason.) (Emp added. Ibid., 56, 57.)
Evidently, even in the early 1800s
(1805) Mr. Holford saw the false prophets rising to the surface
with a message that Matthew 24 is yet to be fulfilled, e.g.,
Irving, Darby, Scofield, and the multitudes of false prophets
since. Mr. Holford says very bluntly, even quoting others, that
those who reject the fact that it was fulfilled in the destruction
of Jerusalem are undermining the very foundation of the Christian
religion. The fulfillment of those passages according to our Lord's
words is unquestionable proof of the divine authority of the gospel.
Sadly, there are many who are attempting to destroy that divine
proof.
How do they destroy the word of God? By saying that Matthew 24:34
(Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till
all these things be fulfilled.) is yet to be fulfilled, and
then by supporting and financing an antichrist group, national
Israel, and by supporting groups that attempt to void the Lord's
clearly fulfilled words of Matthew 24. Thus, according to Mr.
Holford who wrote long before the modern millennial movement that
now finances national Israel those who support the rebuilding
of that apostate city and nation support the efforts to undermine
the word of God. ("Walk where Jesus walked" is the theme
of those raising money. However, the streets in Jerusalem are
many feet above the streets Jesus walked on.)
Problem One: "Well," one
might say, "what about the promised regathering of the Jews
to their land? Have we not seen the fulfillment of that prophecy?"
Answer:
The regathering is to the ensign not to a piece of real
estate. And the Ensign is Christ, and those scattered by
sin include everyone regardless of their background. I have a
very serious and in-depth study in this area, so I will not replow
that ground, other than give a few passages of Scripture:
Isaiah 5:26 And he will lift up an ensign to the nations from far, and will hiss unto them from the end of the earth: and, behold, they shall come with speed swiftly:
Isaiah 11:10 And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek: and his rest shall be glorious. 12 And he shall set up an ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth.
Genesis 49:10 The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him [shall] the gathering of the people [be].
John 3:14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: 15 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
John 12:32 And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.
See Isaiah 5:26, 11:10, 12 & John 3:14, 12:32 / Jeremiah 23:1-4 & John 10 / Jeremiah 24:7 & Hebrews 8:10, 10:16, 17, 11:16, Romans 9:25, 26 / Jeremiah 31:31-33 & 2 Corinthians 3:3-8, Hebrews 10:10. I have found, though, that those committed to the anitchrist position that supports an atheistic people over the Gospel Church do not want to know the truth. (Marlin Maddox, Point of View, 8/6/02, was promoting the modern pro-Israel heresy big time with a guest telling how prophecy is being fulfilled right now in the Middle East. There is BIG money in millennialism, and those who reject that heresy are ostracized.)
The prophecy of the regathering of
those scattered by sin is fulfilled in the Elect being called
to the Cross of Christ, not in a group of antichrist pagans assembling
in Palestine.
Antichristthe spirit that denies that the Christ
came in the flesh, 1 John 2:22. Note the implication of 1 John
4:1-3 is that those who support those who deny Christ (modern
"Jews") are false prophets, and there are many such
prophets. The Old Testament promised regathering was a nation
regathered in faith in Christ, a definition that does not fit
the antichrist crowd being supported by many Christians today.
"But the regathering to the land of Palestine was foretold
in Scripture, and it is according to God's promise."
When Jehovah God placed Israel in the land, He caused the heathens
around them not to desire their land as they served the
Lord God, Exodus 34:24. (See Acts 18:10, the promise given to
the church.) That certainly is not the case concerning the Jews
in the land of Palestine today.
"How about the promised land? Is not the promised land of
rest the land of Palestine?
Answer: Read all of Hebrews chapter four.
There are far too many other things proving the regathering of
those scattered by sin is to Christ to discuss here. See our book,
Israel's Identity/Israel's Conversion, in which we discuss
these things in great detail.
Problem Two: "What about the promise that all Israel shall
be saved"?
And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. (Luke 21:24.)
For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: For this [is] my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins. (Romans 11:25-27.)
[Luke 21:24] Until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. This passage has been understood very differently by different expositors. Some refer it to the time which the Romans who conquered it had dominion over it, as signifying that they should keep possession of it until a part of the pagans should be converted, when it should be rebuilt. Thus it was rebuilt by the Emperor Adrian. Others suppose that it refers to the end of the world, when all the Gentiles shall be converted, and they shall cease to be Gentiles by becoming Christians, meaning that it should always be desolate. Others, that Christ meant to say that in the times of the millennium, when the gospel should spread universally, he would reign personally on the earth, and that the Jews would return and rebuild Jerusalem and the temple. This is the opinion of the Jews and of many Christians. ... (Albert Barnes, Barnes' Notes. Online Bible.)
Thus the last opinion that Christ would reign personally, that the Jews would return and rebuild was and is a Jewish fable assumed by many Christians. I will add that the millennium idea seems to have originated out of the Church of Rome to take pressure off of the pope. It was Edward Irving who took the Jesuit's idea to the Protestants. From Irving, it was assumed by J.N. Darby who made the millennial opinion a popular Christian doctrine, for it was considered a Jewish fable, even heresy, until he succeeded in converting some key men to this new system of thought. Those key men covered the world with the gospel of defeat. (See part III, pp. 41ff., of Death of the Church Victorious for full documentation.)
Though I seldom use Calvin, one of his comments on Romans 11:25 is worth mentioning:
{3} The explanation of this verse is by no means satisfactory. It does not Correspond at all with what the Apostle has already declared in #Ro 11:11, 12, 15; where the restoration of the Jews to the faith is most clearly set forth. Besides, by making Israel, in the next verse, to mean generally the people of God, the contrast, observable through the whole argument, is completely destroyed. (Online Bible.)
In other words, And so all Israel
shall be saved is required by the context of the whole of
Scripture to mean that Israel is all of the Gospel Church, populated
by all of God's people (salvation is by grace not by race or nationality,
i.e., Israeli). So what does that do with until the
fulness of the Gentiles be come in? There are many opinions
as to Paul's meaning here, most of which fail to address the context
of the verse in Romans as well as the context of Galatians and
other passages. All of us understand the statement in context
of what we believe, and can find supporting passages for what
we believe. However, we all have the fallen mentality, and none
of us are inspired in our belief. I am afraid that the proper
understanding of this passage is one of the things spoken of by
Paul that is not only hard to understand, but maybe impossible
to understand until we see Christ.
Context and so all Israel shall be saved by faith in the
deliverer out of Sion who shall turn away the ungodliness
from sinners.
But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than [that of] Abel. (Hebrews 12:22-24.)
It is the church, or the new Jerusalem,
the assembly and church of the firstborn that is being
trodden down by the Gentiles. It is the suffering church world
wide, particularly in Muslim nations, that needs our prayers,
not a pagan nation like modern Israel. It is interesting that
many "Christian" organizations have agreed together
not to try to convert the "Jews" to Christianity. (See
Israel-First Millennialists are Sending Jews to their Death
in Palestine, in this issue.)
Problem Three: "Are not the Jews of our day God's
firstborn, as Mr. Hagee said?"
Mr. Hagee failed to mention that Christ is God's firstborn (Colossians
1:15, 18), New Testament believers are called God's firstborn
(Romans 8:29), and the church is called the firstborn (Hebrews
12:23). Ephraim is called my firstborn in Jeremiah 31:9.
Firstborn means dearly beloved as the first child is to
the father. (Geneva.)
Moreover, Christ is called God's Elect, Isaiah 42:1. Christ
is the covenant of God, Isaiah 42:6, 49:8 (some believe there
must be a new covenant, or a new Christ, for the church). Therefore,
Christians are the heirs to the covenant in Genesis 12, not Jews
nor national Israel. Christ is the covenant law of God, Psalms
119:142. Compare with John 14:6 & Deuteronomy 4:13.
Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. (1 John 3:2.)
"Well, how about Mr. Maddox's
many statements that the promise to Abraham in Genesis 12 is made
to Israel?"
A favorite passage wrested (2 Peter 3:16) by pro-Israel,
anti-Christ speakers is,
Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. (Genesis 12:1-3)
They commonly take v. 3, and change
the word thee to Israel, meaning national
Israel. When they do this, the simple who gladly hear them
(Proverbs 14:15) believe these speakers and writers, and abundantly
finance their fanciful and fictitious ideas with the Lord's money.
Bless and Curse: If the promise here applies to
Abraham's literal seed, then it applies to all of the Hebrew race,
including Ishmael and Esau, as well as Jacob (Israel). But I really
do not hear of anyone claiming to be Hebrews, though that would
be to whom the literal promise is given. If Canaan was everlastingly
promised to Abraham's literal seed, then Ishmael and Esau have
just as much of a claim on it as do the Hebrews.
Paul made it clear that the seed that is heir to Abraham's promise
is Christ, not national Israel:
Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ. (Galatians 3:16 AV)
That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which [is] upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice. (Genesis 22:17, 18.)
Note that the seed is Christ, in whom all the nations of the earth will be blessed through faith in Him. It is a serious corruption of God's Word to say that promise is for today's national Israel. (Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee, and thou be found a liar. Pr. 30:6) Note also that He shall possess the gate of his (Christ's) enemies. The promise though given to Abraham was to be fulfilled in the seed yet to come that is, in Christ. (Acts 3:25.)
But let us see if this people is the heir, or the former, and if the covenant belongs to us or to them. Hear ye now what the Scripture saith concerning the people. Isaac prayed for Rebecca his wife, because she was barren; and she conceived. Furthermore also, Rebecca went forth to inquire of the Lord; and the Lord said to her, "Two nations are in thy womb, and two peoples in thy belly; and the one people shall surpass the other, and the elder shall serve the younger." You ought to understand who was Isaac, who Rebecca, and concerning what persons He declared that this people should be greater than that. And in another prophecy Jacob speaks more clearly to his son Joseph, saying, "Behold, the Lord hath not deprived me of thy presence; bring thy sons to me, that I may bless them." And he brought Manasseh and Ephraim, desiring that Manasseh should be blessed, because he was the elder. With this view Joseph led him to the right hand of his father Jacob. But Jacob saw in spirit the type of the people to arise afterwards. And what says [the Scripture]? And Jacob changed the direction of his hands, and laid his right hand upon the head of Ephraim, the second and younger, and blessed him. And Joseph said to Jacob, "Transfer thy right hand to the head of Manasseh, for he is my first-born son." And Jacob said, "I know it, my son, I know it; but the elder shall serve the younger: yet he also shall be blessed." Ye see on whom he laid [his hands], that this people should be first, and heir of the covenant. If then, still further, the same thing was intimated through Abraham, we reach the perfection of our knowledge. What, then, says He to Abraham? "Because thou hast believed, it is imputed to thee for righteousness: behold, I have made thee the father of those nations who believe in the Lord while in [a state of] uncircumcision." (The Epistle of Barnabas, [A.D. 100] chapter 8. The Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. I, pp. 145, 146. Also found on Ultimate Christian Library, Reformation History Library, by Ages Software.)
And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, [saying], In thee shall all nations be blessed. So then they which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham. (Galatians 3:8, 9.)
The law, given 430 years later, could
not disannul the covenant, or promise. The promise was not passed
down according to law, but according to God's grace. And thus
the promise here to Abraham concerning his seed was not passed
down according to the physical law, or lineage, but according
to the spiritual law, or God's grace. The principle of God's grace
vs law is seen in the fact that the law required the blessing
to go to the eldest son, but many times it passed down otherwise.
Accordingly, false prophets turn the hearts and pocketbooks of
Christians to the apostate nation of Israel at the expense of
the blood bought Church of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The apple of God's eye is the church, for Christ shed His blood for the church, not for an atheistic nation.
For thus saith the LORD of hosts; After the glory hath he sent me unto the nations which spoiled you: for he that toucheth you toucheth the apple of his eye. (Zechariah 2:8 AV)
(3.) What he will do for his church shall be an evident proof of God's tender care of it and affection to it: He that touches you touches the apple of his eye. This is a high expression of God's love to his church. By his resentment of the injuries done to her it appears how dear she is to him, how he interests himself in all her interests, and takes what is done against her, not only as done against himself, but as done against the very apple of his eye, the tenderest part, which nature has made very fine, has put a double guard upon, and taught us to be in a special manner careful of, and which the least touch is a great offence to. This encourages the people of God to pray with David (#Ps 17:8), Keep me as the apple of thy eye; and engages them to do as Solomon directs (#Pr 7:2), to keep his law as the apple of their eye. Some understand it thus:
"He that touches you touches the apple of his own eye; whoever do you any injury will prove, in the issue, to have done the greatest injury to themselves." (Matthew Henry, Online Bible.)
The fire of Millennium fever is gripping
the nation, fanned by national Israel (who sees the "Christian
right" as its ticket to America's purse strings, as well
as military protection), speakers who seem to be on national Israel's
payroll, and authors who have found a way to "break the bank,"
and all at the expense of the blood bought church of the Lord
Jesus Christ. The water of the word of God needs to be applied,
and the attention of the Christian public redirected to the truth
of God's word. There will be a payday someday for the deceitful
workers and those who have been willingly misled in this very
critical area.
Next time, Lord willing, we will discuss some major points from
the book of Acts, primarily the many times the residents of Jerusalem
were warned of its soon coming destruction. There are at least
five warnings delivered by the apostles to the people, so the
destruction did not come unannounced. The people who were slain
there were there despite the many warnings.
Published on Thursday, November 15,
2001 by the Inter Press Service
U.S. Policy Towards Taliban Influenced by Oil - Authors
by Julio Godoy
PARIS - Under the influence of U.S. oil companies, the government
of George W. Bush initially blocked U.S. secret service investigations
on terrorism, while it bargained with the Taliban the delivery
of Osama bin Laden in exchange for political recognition and economic
aid, two French intelligence analysts claim.
In the book "Bin Laden, la verite interdite" ("Bin
Laden, the forbidden truth"), that appeared in Paris on Wednesday,
the authors, Jean-Charles Brisard and Guillaume Dasquie, reveal
that the Federal Bureau of Investigation's deputy director John
O'Neill resigned in July in protest over the obstruction.
Brisard claim O'Neill told them that "the main obstacles
to investigate Islamic terrorism were U.S. Oil corporate interests
and the role played by Saudi Arabia in it".
The two claim the U.S. government's main objective in Afghanistan
was to consolidate the position of the Taliban regime to obtain
access to the oil and gas reserves in Central Asia.
They affirm that until August, the U.S. government saw the Taliban
regime "as a source of stability in Central Asia that would
enable the construction of an oil pipeline across Central Asia",
from the rich oilfields in Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Kazakhstan,
through Afghanistan and Pakistan, to the Indian Ocean.
Until now, says the book, "the oil and gas reserves of Central
Asia have been controlled by Russia. The Bush government wanted
to change all that".
But, confronted with Taliban's refusal to accept U.S. conditions,
"this rationale of energy security changed into a military
one", the authors claim.
"At one moment during the negotiations, the U.S. representatives
told the Taliban, 'either you accept our offer of a carpet of
gold, or we bury you under a carpet of bombs'," Brisard said
in an interview in Paris.
According to the book, the government of Bush began to negotiate
with the Taliban immediately after coming into power in February.
U.S. and Taliban diplomatic representatives met several times
in Washington, Berlin and Islamabad.
To polish their image in the United States, the Taliban even employed
a U.S. expert on public relations, Laila Helms. The authors claim
that Helms is also an expert in the works of U.S. Secret services,
for her uncle, Richard Helms, is a former director of the Central
Intelligence Agency (CIA).
The last meeting between U.S. And Taliban representatives took
place in August, five weeks before the attacks on New York and
Washington, the analysts maintain.
On that occasion, Christina Rocca, in charge of Central Asian
affairs for the U.S. Government, met the Taliban ambassador to
Pakistan in Islamabad.
Brisard and Dasquie have long experience in intelligence analysis.
Brisard was until the late 1990s director of economic analysis
and strategy for Vivendi, a French company. He also worked for
French secret services, and wrote for them in 1997 a report on
the now famous Al Qaeda network, headed by bin Laden.
Dasquie is an investigative journalist and publisher of Intelligence
Online, a respected newsletter on diplomacy, economic analysis
and strategy, available through the Internet.
Brisard and Dasquie draw a portrait of closest aides to President
Bush, linking them to oil business.
Bush's family has a strong oil background. So are some of his
top aides. From the U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney, through the
director of the National Security Council Condoleeza Rice, to
the Ministers of Commerce and Energy, Donald Evans and Stanley
Abraham, all have long worked for U.S. Oil companies.
Cheney was until the end of last year president of Halliburton,
a company that provides services for oil industry; Rice was between
1991 and 2000 manager for Chevron; Evans and Abraham worked for
Tom Brown, another oil giant.
Besides the secret negotiations held between Washington and Kabul
and the importance of the oil industry, the book takes issue with
the role played by Saudi Arabia in fostering Islamic fundamentalism,
in the personality of bin Laden, and with the networks that the
Saudi dissident built to finance his activities.
Brisard and Dasquie contend the U.S. Government's claim that it
had been prosecuting bin Laden since 1998. "Actually,"
Dasquie says, "the first state to officially prosecute bin
Laden was Libya, on the charges of terrorism."
"Bin Laden wanted to settle in Libya in the early 1990s,
but was hindered by the government of Muammar Qaddafi," Dasquie
claims. "Enraged by Libya's refusal, bin Laden organized
attacks inside Libya, including assassination attempts against
Qaddafi."
Dasquie singles out one group, the Islamic Fighting Group (IFG),
reputedly the most powerful Libyan dissident organization, based
in London, and directly linked with bin Laden.
"Qaddafi even demanded Western police institutions, such
as Interpol, to pursue the IFG and bin Laden, but never obtained
co-operation," Dasquie says. "Until today, members of
IFG openly live in London."
The book confirms earlier reports that the U.S. Government worked
closely with the United Nations during the negotiations with the
Taliban.
"Several meetings took place this year, under the arbitration
of Francesc Vendrell, personal representative of UN secretary
general Kofi Annan, to discuss the situation in Afghanistan,"
says the book.
"Representatives of the U.S. Government and Russia, and the
six countries that border with Afghanistan were present at these
meetings," it says. "Sometimes, representatives of the
Taliban also sat around the table."
These meetings, also called "6+2" because of the number
of states (six neighbors plus U.S. and Russia) involved, have
been confirmed by Naif Naik, former Pakistani Minister for Foreign
Affairs.
In a French television news program two weeks ago, Naik said during
a "6+2" meeting in Berlin in July, the discussions turned
around "the formation of a government of national unity.
If the Taliban had accepted this coalition, they would have immediately
received international economic aid."
"And the pipe lines from Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan would
have come," he added.
Naik also claimed that Tom Simons, the U.S. representative at
these meetings, openly threatened the Taliban and Pakistan.
"Simons said, 'either the Taliban behave as they ought to,
or Pakistan convinces them to do so, or we will use another option'.
The words Simons used were 'a military operation'," Naik
claimed.
By Thomas Williamson 3131 S Archer
Avenue Chicago, Illinois 60608
Okay, listen up, all you prophecy buffs. See if you can get the
right answer to this question - what famous prophecy teacher said
this?
"There is no doubt that the Antichrist has been born.
Firmly established already in his early years, he will, after
reaching maturity, achieve supreme power."
Was this said by A. Jerry Falwell B. Pat Robertson
C. Jack Van Impe D. Hal Lindsey E. St. Martin
of Tours, 316-397 AD?
If you said St Martin of Tours, you were right. This worthy fellow
was convinced that the Antichrist was already on the prowl back
then in the Fourth Century.
Martin, who made a vague prediction about the approximate timing
of Antichrist's coming, was wiser than his mentor, Hilarius of
Poitiers, who made the mistake of pinpointing the unveiling of
Antichrist, saying it would happen by 365 AD. Hilarius looked
foolish when his prediction failed.
From earliest times until now, many prophecy-minded Christians
have firmly believed that they were living in the last days and
that Christ would come during their lifetime. Recalling the errors
of Hilarius and St Martin keeps me from reaching for my martinized
ascension robe, every time that some modern preacher proclaims,
according to the so-called "signs of the times," that
the Rapture is coming in just a few more years.
A sense of historical perspective will help us understand that
there is nothing new about the feverish expectations of some Christians,
that they would live to see Christ's Second Coming.
In 793 AD, Spanish monk Beatus of Liebana created a panic on Easter
Eve by predicting that the world would end that very night.
In 847 the prophetess Thiota created a commotion in Mainz, Germany
by predicting that the world would end the following year. A lot
of people were taken in, but what do you expect - it was the Dark
Ages.
The year 1184 saw a flurry of predictions that the Antichrist
would come that year.
In 1310, Franciscan friar Fra Dolcino of Novara announced that
Christ would return within 3 years.
Czech archdeacon Militz of Kromeric stated that Antichrist would
manifest his infernal presence sometime between 1363 and 1367.
In 1420, Martinek Hausha pinpointed the time of the Second Coming
- it would be between February 1 and February 14 of that year.
In 1500, the famous Florentine painter Sandro Botticelli believed
himself to be living in the midst of the Great Tribulation, and
that the Millennium would begin about 1504.
NAUSEATING FALSE PROPHECY. Frederick Nausea, Bishop of
Vienna, said the world would end in 1532.
Mathematician John Napier, the discoverer of logarithms, used
his number-crunching expertise to calculate the date of the end
of the world - it would be in 1688.
French Huguenot leader Pierre Jurieu predicted the end of the
world in 1689
SHIP OF FOOLS. In 1694, Johannes Kelpius and his all-male
cult, "Women in the Wilderness;" traveled from Germany
to America to greet Christ at His glorious Second Coming. When
Christ didn't show, the "women" disbanded their cult
and toddled back home to Germany.
Bible scholar William Bell predicted the end of the world on April
5, 1761, causing thousands to flee London. When they returned,
the enraged citizenry tossed Bell into the Bedlam lunatic asylum,
where they evidently thought that he belonged.
John Wesley, founder of Methodism, predicted that Christ would
return in 1836.
MILLER TIME. On October 12, 1844, William Miller published
these words: "I am strong in the opinion that the next
will be the last Lord's day sinners will ever have in probation;
and within 10 or 15 days from thence, they will see Him whom they
have hated and despised, to their shame and everlasting contempt."
Not everyone was impressed by the Millerite prophecies Henry Jones
told Miller, "You are truly fanatical, and running wild."
In 1855, Scottish Presbyterian preacher John Cumming, in his book
"The End: Or, the Proximate Signs of the Close of This Dispensation,"
predicted the end of the age in 1864. He cited the current signs
of the times, such as the Crimean War and the raising of funds
to rebuild a Jewish temple in Jerusalem, as evidences that the
end was near.
In 1883, Baptist theologian JR. Graves warned against the expenditure
of money to construct Baptist church buildings in Italy and all
of Europe. He believed that all such buildings would soon be confiscated
by a resurgent Roman Catholic Church, in fulfillment of Revelation
17:8.
PYRAMID SCHEME. Pyramidologist Charles Piazzi Smith, based
on his painstaking measurements of the dimensions of the Great
Pyramid in Egypt, calculated that the Second Coming would be about
1882. More recently, David Webber and Noah Hutchings of the "Southwest
Radio Church" peddled a book predicting, based on Great Pyramid
measurements, that Christ would return in the 1980's.
Herbert Armstrong, founder of the Worldwide Church of God, predicted
the end of the world in 1936.
In 1950, a young evangelist by the name of Billy Graham proclaimed
that "We may have another year, maybe 2 years. Then I believe
it is going to be over." (Nowadays, an older and wiser Graham
says it is wrong to speculate or make guesses about the timing
of Christ's Second Coming).
While it is natural and commendable for us to long for Christ's
return, we must recognize that this doctrine can be abused and
taken to such extremes as to bring disrepute on the truth of His
Second Coming, as well as on Christianity as a whole.
The problem is this: for generations, we have made a laughing-stock
of fundamentalist Christianity by our false predictions of imminent
doom-and-gloom, and as a result, most people do not take us seriously
as to our warnings about the eternal destiny of lost sinners in
Hell, or anything else that we preach.
For years we have poured forth end-times fantasy novels and videos,
portraying an intricate, detailed phantasmagoria of horrors that
are allegedly to be unleashed soon on the scoffers, heathens and
infidels of the world. None of these predictions have come true.
Because of our false prophecies, intelligent people have become
convinced that the Bible is not true, and that fundamentalists
are a bunch of deranged wackadoos and nutheads who howl with delight
at every piece of bad news in the world, in the expectation that
it will lead to their longed-for Armageddon bloodbath. This is
the baggage that all of us must carry, especially American missionaries
in foreign lands. Who wants to listen to a religion known mainly
for its longing for the death of all unbelievers; and a pathetic,
unbroken track record of failed prophecies?
Unfortunately, the date-setting and predictions about Christ's
inevitable return in this decade are still being generated at
a furious pace, The destruction of the World Trade Center in New
York on September 11, 2001 has only increased the pace of wild
speculation.
Quiz question: Where in the Bible does it say that when the World
Trade Center in New York is bombed, it is a sign of the Second
Coming? Answer: the Bible doesn't say that.
Then there are the ever-present rumors about how the temple in
Jerusalem is about to be rebuilt, and this proves that Christ
will shortly return. Where did we hear this before? Didn't John
Cumming use this "proof' to predict Christ's soon return
way back in 1855?
RED HEIFER OR RED HERRING? Then there is the red heifer
in Mississippi who is regularly trotted out as a proof of Christ's
soon coming. We are gravely informed that the appearance of the
red heifer is a sign of the Messiah's coming, according to "Jewish
tradition." Quiz question: Where does the Bible say anything
about a red heifer as a sign of Christ's coming? It doesn't say
that at all.
It's time to stop wandering down the trail of delusion. We should
stop buying all books and videos that pretend to intimate knowledge
of the future. Christian bookstores should no longer sell such
books. We should stop sending money to the televangelists who
set dates for Christ's coming, and who keep pushing those dates
a few years farther into the future.
There is no shame in admitting that we do not know everything
that will happen in the future, or when it will happen. It might
even be a Christlike thing to do. In Mark 13:32, Christ said,
"But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the
angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father."
To restore the credibility of evangelical Christianity, I am calling
for a moratorium on all date-setting for at least 100 years, or
until Christ returns whichever comes first. (Reprinted from Illinois
and Indiana Missionary Baptist, August, 2002)
(As published in Christian News,
September 23, 2002)
By Thomas Williamson, 3131 S. Archer Avenue, Chicago, Illinois
60608
The Prime Directive of many American dispensationalist Christians
today is to encourage as many Jews as possible to emigrate to
Palestine, so that two-thirds of them will then be killed there.
Based on a mistaken interpretation of just one Bible verse, Zechariah 13:8, which describes the death of two-thirds of the Jewish people, there are many Christians who believe that this will happen in the very near future, and that it is their duty to help make the prophecy come true.
American policy in the Middle East is controlled by this vision, which insists that the Palestinian people must be subdued and expelled from their homeland, even at the cost of a nuclear world war if necessary, so that the Jews can then occupy that land and then, in turn, be killed off. American evangelical influence in Congress, while not powerful enough to enact a ban on partial-birth abortion, yet manages to exercise enough clout over Congress to ensure that there is no hindrance to this essential tenet of the Armageddon Theology, that Palestine must be turned over to the Jews at any cost.
Whenever the Israeli government talks of land for peace, or any kind of recognition of Palestinian human and property rights, some American evangelicals go into hissy fits, insisting that Israel is going against God. In 1998 Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson flew to Israel on an urgent mission to torpedo any talk of peace between Israel and the Palestinians. Such a peace settlement would endanger the fulfillment of their belief that the Jews have to be slaughtered and that the blood in Palestine must flow up to the horses' bridles.
Louis Goldberg, at that time professor at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, described the future Jewish holocaust in his book "Turbulence Over the Middle East," published in 1982: "As we view the darkness in Israel yet to come, it is with a wrench in one's heart concerning what is yet to happen in the land... The prophet Zechariah described the holocaust in the land of Israel: `And it will come about in all the land, declares the LORD, that two parts in it [the land] will be cut off and perish; But the third will be left in it, And I will bring the third part through the fire, Refine them as silver is refined, And test them as gold is tested '
"The dire proclamation is that two-thirds of the land's population will perish. This means that of the three-million population today in Israel, should this horrible event take place now, two million will die because of the political Antichrist's fury against Israel, in exact accordance with Satan's desires."
David Brickner, executive director of Jews for Jesus, makes the same prediction of doom, saying that this slaughter will come about as a reaction to Jewish attempts to rebuild their Temple in Jerusalem: "A full two-thirds of the population of Israel will perish in the ensuing conflict, according to Zechariah 13:8. The hope of the Jewish people in seeing the glorious Temple rebuilt will, in fact, lead to their greatest calamity and suffering." (From the book "Future Hope, A Jewish Christian Looks at the End of the World," 1999).
So is Jews for Jesus warning Jews to get out of Israel, or not to move there? On the contrary, books by David Brickner and Moishe Rosen contain material encouraging Jews to move to Israel, and supporting the radical groups that are trying to build a temple for animal sacrifices in Jerusalem, even though they believe this activity will trigger the massacre of millions of Jews.
One of the greatest dispensationalist authorities, John Walvoord, is in full agreement that most of the Jews have to die. In his book "Israel in Prophecy," published in 1962, he says, "According to Zechariah's prophecy, two thirds of the children of Israel in the land will perish, but the one third that are left will be refined and be awaiting the deliverance of God at the second coming of Christ." (This is a strange sort "deliverance," that does not happen until two-thirds of the rescuees are dead!)
"Left Behind" novelist Tim LaHaye says in his "Prophecy Study Bible," "Prior to Israel's conversion, Zechariah predicts that two-thirds ('two parts') of the Jewish people in the land will perish during the tribulation period. Only one third of the Jewish population will survive until Christ comes to establish His kingdom on earth."
Christian Zionists tend to
oppose any Arab proposals for peace in Palestine, on the grounds
that such offers are just a trap. They say that the Arabs do not
want peace, and that they just want to see a lot of Jews die.
How does this differ from the Christian Zionist agenda for the
Middle East? John Walvoord has been quoted as saying, "As
for destroying planet earth, we can do nothing. Peace, for us,
is not in God's book."
Are those fundamentalist Christians who believe this way (that
Israeli Jews will never experience peace and are doomed to be
wiped out) doing all they can to persuade Jews to evacuate Israel
and thus save themselves from this inevitable slaughter? Don't
bet your life on it - many of them are doing all they can to persuade
Jews to move to Israel, even donating millions of dollars for
that purpose.
The article "Odd Bedfellows" in the August 12, 2002
U.S. News and World Report states that hundreds of thousands
of evangelical Christians in America are donating millions of
dollars to relocate Jewish people to Israel. One group alone has
received $60 million in the last 8 years, and there are many groups
who are raising these funds. While Christian ministries in America
go begging for money, American Christians are lavishing their
money on schemes to move Jews to Israel, and to pay for the education
of their children in Jewish religious schools. (Are there not
any Christian schools in America, or Israel, that could use that
money from churchgoing Christians)?
It is no secret that the reason that American Christians are helping
Jews to move to Israel is because they expect to see them get
killed there. This is a fact that is well-known to Protestant,
Catholic, Muslim and Jewish commentators, as well as secular journalists,
all over the Middle East as well as here in America. These writers
often express their utter contempt and scorn for a religion that
is motivated mainly by a desire to foment Armageddon in the Middle
East, at the cost of millions of Jewish and Arab lives.
Jeffery Sheler states in the August 12 U.S. News and World
Report article that "Many evangelicals view the 1948
founding of Israel as the first in a chain of biblically mandated
events that will culminate in the return of Jesus and the end
of history - a scenario popularized in the best-selling `Left
Behind' fiction series. Part of that scenario, based on a hotly
debated interpretation of passages in Revelation, Daniel, and
Ezekiel, involves a devastating `battle of Armageddon' - a nuclear
holocaust that is stopped at its climax by the arrival of Jesus,
who defeats the forces of evil and establishes an era of peace.
But millions of Jews are killed in the battle, and the survivors
accept Jesus as their Messiah."
Almost all Christian Zionist organizations in Israel have
taken an official pledge not to evangelize the Jewish people of
Israel, or to seek converts among them. They do not want the Jews
to become Christians. They want them to keep on being Jews, so
that they can get themselves killed and fulfill the "Armageddon
Theology" scenario.
As Gary North has noted in his book "Rapture Fever,"
"Dispensationalists want the Rapture to deliver them from
all of their earthly responsibilities. Thus, they have taken this
view of evangelism: `Let's not bring the gospel to the Israelis,
thus insuring that two-thirds of them will be killed during the
Great Tribulation and roast in hell eternally.' This view of evangelism
is hidden behind a lot of rhetoric about concern for the State
of Israel. There is indeed concern: to have millions of Israelis
die horrible deaths and spend eternity in the lake of fire for
the sake of the pre-tribulation Rapture. This is why dispensationalists
refuse to send missionaries to Israel to evangelize Jews.
"The preservation of the State of Israel is basic to the
eschatology of the pre-tribulational dispensationalist. Why? So
that the Antichrist will be able to wipe out two-thirds of Israel's
population after the Rapture of the Church and during the Great
Tribulation. The Jews of the State of Israel are to serve as God's
cannon fodder in the inevitable war of Armageddon.
"Without the Jews' service as future sitting ducks, pre-tribulational
dispensationalists would lose all faith in the imminent Rapture.
The Antichrist would have no ducks in a barrel if there were no
barrel. The State of Israel is the Antichrist's barrel. The leaders
of dispensationalism do not say in public that this is what their
support for Israel is all about, but it is. Based on Zechariah
13:8-9, among other passages, dispensationalists conclude that
two-thirds of the Jews are doomed. This is standard teaching from
the dispensationalist pulpits."
Grace Halsell, in her book "Prophecy and Politics,"
commented on the zeal that some Christians have for seeing multitudes
of Jews die: "Convinced that a nuclear Armageddon is an inevitable
event within the divine scheme of things, many evangelical dispensationalists
have committed themselves to a course for Israel that, by their
own admission, will lead directly to a holocaust indescribably
more savage and widespread than any vision of carnage that could
have generated in Adolf Hitler's criminal mind."
Supporters of the Armageddon Theology insist that there cannot
be, and must not be, peace in the Middle East until Christ returns
after the slaughter of the Jews, They denounce all who seek peace
in the Middle East as anti-Semitic and as "going against
the Jews." But is it not anti-Semitic to desire and work
for the death of millions of Jews, as many American dispensationalists
are doing today?
Rabbi Eric Yoffie, president of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations,
is quoted in the U. S. News and World Report article
as saying, "People who say there can be no peace are not
really friends of Israel." The secret is out - Christian
Zionists are no friends of the Jews, not when they encourage Jews
to move to Palestine and then do everything possible to stir up
Arab rage against the Jews, so that millions of Jews wind up dead.
The Christian Zionist, like the space alien from an old "Twilight
Zone" episode, poses as an altruistic benefactor of humanity,
and carries a book entitled "To Serve (Jewish) Man,"
but actually it's a cookbook, with Jews as the sacrificial lambs.
The spectacle of fundamentalist Christians raising millions of
dollars to resettle Jews in Palestine, while withholding the Gospel
from them, is so preposterous that even some dispensationalists
have boldly protested against it. In the January/February 2002
Fundamentalist Digest,Don Jasmin warns against the "Christians
For Israel" organization, saying: Its basic premise and
program appears to be the promotion of returning Jews around the
world to their homeland via financial assistance from professing
Christians. This organization also appears to give an unquestioned
blanket approval to Israel, regardless of its ethics and practices.
" ...CFI appears to be more interested in promoting the return
of Jews to an earthly homeland than it is in their individual
conversions.... What good is it if you send a Jew back to his
native land, but he dies in his sin without Christ and goes to
hell? What eternal benefit has been accomplished?"
Some would say that Christians have a duty to help fulfill
alleged Bible prophecies, even if the Jews get hurt in the process.
It is this kind of twisted thinking that has led to wicked persecution
against the Jews over the centuries, even though Christ said in
Matthew 23:34-36 that all the prophesied punishments against the Jews
would fall upon that generation that was alive in 33 AD, Matthew
23:34-36. This prophecy was fulfilled when Jerusalem was destroyed
by the Romans in 70 AD - therefore, there is no reason to believe
that there will be further judgments against the Jews in a future
tribulation period, and certainly no reason for Christians to
help bring about such judgments.
Does Zechariah 13:8 really predict that two-thirds of the Jews
will be killed in the 21st Century, or at any time future to us?
The preceding 2 verses, 13:6 and 13:7, are clearly a prediction
of the crucifixion of Christ, which happened in the First Century
AD. In Matthew 26:3 1, Christ cited Zechariah 13:7 as a prediction
of His crucifixion,
How is it, then, that Zechariah 13:8 jumps from the First Century
to the 21st? Was there not an event in the First Century that
fulfilled Zechariah's terrible prophecy? Those who have read the
works of Josephus know that there was indeed a vast slaughter
of the Jews during the Jewish Revolt against Rome in 67-70 AD.
Adam Clarke, in his commentary, states that Zechariah 13:8 was
fulfilled "in the war with the Romans" and that
the survival of one-third of the Jews means that "those
who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ shall be preserved alive;
and not one of these perished in the siege [of Jerusalem], or
afterwards, by those wars."
The historical record, as preserved in detail by Josephus,
shows us that the terrible slaughter of Zechariah 13:8 already
took place more than 1900 years ago. This should be a relief to
anyone who genuinely cares about the welfare of the Jewish people
in the world today. It should cure the current mania in which
Christians are diverting millions of dollars from Christian evangelism
and Great Commission work, and using it to ship the Jews off to
an uncertain and perilous future in the Middle East.
It means we can start genuinely loving the Jewish people, instead
of plotting to get two-thirds of them bumped off.