Babylon in Revelations by Phil Liszewski

1) The only references to great city in the Greek are in the Revelation. The first reference definitely refers to Jerusalem "where their Lord was crucified."

Revelation 11:8 "and their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city which is allegorically called Sodom and Egypt, where their Lord was crucified."

Revelation 16:19 "The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell, and God remembered great Babylon, to make her drain the cup of the fury of his wrath."

Revelation 17:18 "And the woman that you saw is the great city which has dominion over the kings of the earth."

Revelation 18:10 "they will stand far off, in fear of her torment, and say, "Alas! alas! thou great city, thou mighty city, Babylon! In one hour has thy judgment come." 16 "Alas, alas, for the great city that was clothed in fine linen, in purple and scarlet, bedecked with gold, with jewels, and with pearls! 18 and cried out as they saw the smoke of her burning, "What city was like the great city?" 19 And they threw dust on their heads, as they wept and mourned, crying out, "Alas, alas, for the great city where all who had ships at sea grew rich by her wealth! In one hour she has been laid waste. 21 Then a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone and threw it into the sea, saying, "So shall Babylon the great city be thrown down with violence, and shall be found no more;"'

Jer 4:30 "And you, O desolate one, what will you do? Although you dress in scarlet, Although you decorate [yourself with] ornaments of gold, Although you enlarge your eyes with paint, In vain you make yourself beautiful; [Your] lovers despise you; They seek your life."

Also compare:
Matthew 23:37 "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, killing the prophets and stoning those who are sent to you! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not! 38 Behold, your house is forsaken and desolate."

Revelation 17:5 "and on her forehead was written a name of mystery: "Babylon the great, mother of harlots and of earth's abominations." 6 And I saw the woman, drunk with the blood of the saints and the blood of the martyrs of Jesus. When I saw her I marveled greatly."

Revelation 18:21 "Then a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone and threw it into the sea, saying, "So shall Babylon the great city be thrown down with violence, and shall be found no more... 24 And in her was found the blood of prophets and of saints, and of ALL who have been slain on earth."

Revelation 19:2 "for his judgments are true and just; he has judged the great harlot who corrupted the earth with her fornication, and he has avenged on her the blood of his servants."

Notice also...
Isaiah 1:1 "The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem... 21. How the faithful city has become a harlot, she that was full of justice! Righteousness lodged in her, but now murderers."

Ezekiel 16:2 "Son of man, make known to Jerusalem her abominations..."

Jeremiah 2:2 "Go and proclaim in the hearing of Jerusalem, Thus says the LORD, I remember the devotion of your youth, your love as a bride, how you followed me in the wilderness, in a land not sown... 20. "For long ago you broke your yoke and burst your bonds; and you said, 'I will not serve.' Yea, upon every high hill and under every green tree you bowed down as a harlot."'

Revelation 21:9..."Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb." 10 And in the Spirit he carried me away to a great, high mountain, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem..."

There are two Jerusalems. There are two covenants. There is physical (shadow) and there is spirit (reality in God.) John in Revelations is concerned with the passing of the covenants...the judgment on the old and the installation of the new.

by Phil Liszewski
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A Day Is With The Lord As A Thousand Years...

2 Peter 3:1-8

“This second epistle, beloved, I now write unto you; in both which I stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance: That you may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandment of us the apostles of the Lord and Savior: Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, And saying, where is the promise of his coming: for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation.

Verse 8,  But beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.

Verse 9, The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

Verse 10, But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Now, almost everyone I hear preaching on the return of the Lord uses verse 9 to substantiate that the reason  Jesus has not returned is because one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. They also say that no man knoweth the day nor the hour of His return.

The problem with using the “one day is with the Lord as a thousand years” for their defense of why Jesus has not returned, is that they have taken this verse completely out of it’s biblical context.

This scripture is a reference to Psalm chapter 90 verse 4, “For a thousand years in thy sight are but as yesterday when it is past, and as a watch in the night.” In this Psalm, the author is talking about God faithfulness and how God is always faithful, it is not an allusion to make up some sort of time statement concerning the delay of Christ’s return. This is the same as Peter’s remarks.

Let me put it into its proper context. Let’s use the who, what, where, and when principles.

Who is speaking: It is Peter . How do we know that? Verse one in chapter one says this:

“I Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ..grace and peace unto you. This has identified who is speaking and writing.

Secondly, who is Peter speaking to the first century Christians of his day and his generation.

What is he talking about? There were some Christians departing from the faith and becoming scoffers concerning the immediate return of Christ which Jesus promised to them.

Scoff means to be scornful or to reject or make fun of or sneer at.

Peter is using old testament scriptures to refute their scoffing that Christ was not going to return in their generation.

There are a couple of things we must look at in verse 3. Notice it says, knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers. Let us see if we can identify the “last days”. Most folks think that the last days are the days you and I live in now in the 21 century, but this is false and the scriptures will substantiate that.

Lets go to the book of Acts, chapter one verses 15-17: “for these are not drunken as ye suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day. But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel. And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams. This is exactly what was happening on the day of Pentecost and Peter plainly says that this is the fulfillment of the prophecy of Joel  chapter 2 verse 28-32. Furthermore, Peter calls it the last days. Peters’ generation lived during the last days of the old covenant.

Hebrews chapter one verse one and two says: God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days

Spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds:” Notice two things, here..these last days and the worlds which in the greek language does not mean more than one physical world but  world here again is the greek word aion or ages.  The ages are the old covenant age and the new covenant age.

Now, it is true that Jesus said in Matthew 24:36, that “But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only. Jesus did not know the hour nor the day, but in verse 34, Jesus did know the generation because he said, “verily, I say unto you, this generation shall not pass till all these things be fulfilled.”

Folks, Jesus plainly gave the disciples the signs of His coming and the end of the age in Matthew chapter 24.

However, in John  chapter 16, Jesus told his disciples that there were many things He could not yet tell them, but that the Father would send the Spirit. When the Spirit came, He would reveal to the disciples “things to come” John 16 verse 13, the Bible says, Howbeit, when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth.. and he will show you things to come.,”The Spirit was to show the disciples when the end of the age was going to take place.

An example of this can be found in 1 John 2:18,  “Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time” John is plainly saying this is not only the last days of the old covenant age, but now John is saying that it is down to the last hour. Folks, this was the last days of the old covenant world which was being replaced by the new covenant.

Secondly, to use this verse of scripture as a defense as to why Jesus has not yet returned is an attempt to cover up one’s lack of understanding of the “second coming of Christ”.  But this makes matters even worse.

If this verse of scripture is used to say that since there has not been a physical, eyeball seeing , earth destroying return of Christ in the clouds in the air, thus he has not returned and it means it is still yet future, then we are calling Jesus Christ a liar and a deceiver of men, because Jesus plainly told his disciples that he would return in their generation and that there were some standing there that would not see death until they see him coming in glory or judgement, even those that pierced him.  It not only discredits Jesus Christ himself, but it discredits the whole Bible as the Word of God! 

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Paul's Rebuke of Hymenaeus and Philetus by Dave Lewerenz

Paul's Rebuke of Hymenaeus and Philetus is used by many Dispensationalists / futurists to rebuke the Preterist viewpoint about the Resurrection being in the 1st century... so let's take a look at what Paul was rebuking them for and a few points to consider. 

2 Timothy 2:17-18

Their teaching will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, who have departed from the truth. They say that the resurrection has already taken place, and they destroy the faith of some.

Full Preterists say that the Resurrection is passed nowadays, having happened in AD70, when we believe all "last days" prophecy was fulfilled in the destruction of Jerusalem and it's Temple. The Resurrection having a spiritual covenantual nature, not a physical one as most within Christianity teach nowadays.

Upon a first / casual glance it may appear that Full Preterists are indeed guilty, but let's look a little closer...

• When Hymenaeus and Philetus were teaching that the resurrection had passed was before AD70, so yes, according to the Preterist viewpoint, they were in the wrong. Paul was rebuking their teaching before the ad70 marker, so Full Preterists are not doing the same thing as Paul was rebuking, as it was the timing of their message that Paul was rebuking.

• An even more interesting thing to consider that futurists overlook here is this... HOW could Hymenaeus and Philetus fool ANYONE if the resurrection was a physical one? If they were looking for physical bodies to break forth from the grave and fly up into the sky... there is absolutely NO way that Hymenaeus and Philetus could fool anyone, as that was not happening. The ONLY way these two guys could possibly fool anyone was if indeed the resurrection was a spiritual (unseen) event!

Everlasting Destruction??? by Barry J DuPont

Traditional thinking of the subject of everlasting destruction is that it relates to “post-mortem continuity”. The biblical approch however is one of “legacy” and “history”. The subject mater in the New Testament scripture is not “where they were headed post mortem” but rather what legacy would continue to effect ongoing human history.

This is another reason why we can take seriously the immanence that exists throughout the New Testament writtings.

They were in the “last days” and it was the “last days” of the old covenant.

Orthodoxy often attempt to end the old covenant at the cross. Since the old covenant cannot end untill all is fulfilled and the cross did not on its own fulfill all scripture then the point becomse obvious. Even the pouring forth of the Holy Spirit had not taken place which Joel prophicied for the “last days”.

Where Orthodoxy has an increadible difficulty is that it sees things in broad strokes of “black or white”, as “yes or no” as “done or not yet done”. But this does not work with any of the larger issues that the New Testament is speaking about. Within the New Testament from Acts through Revelation there is what is called an “already but not yet”. Like saying “saved but being saved” or “Redeemed but still being redeemed” or “freed from the law but still being freed”.

What is missed in this is the fact that they were living by “faith” and “hope”. And in this faith and hope there was an already in the sence that the applied meaning of what was happening could be then applied to an extent but at the same time not all things were yet made manifest.

So then concerning the law, the authorities were “disarmed” but not yet “brought to nothing”. It this tention that is always present in the New Testament writtings because they were in the last days of the old covenant while the followers of Christ were living by faith holding fast their confidence firm until the end.

So then lets get on with our little study on “everlasting destruction” from the vantage point of a then emienent end to the old covenant during the time that the New Testament scriptures were being written.

2Th 1:7 And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels,

2Th 1:8 In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ:

2Th 1:9 Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord.

Simply put this means that the OLD could not be a part of the NEW. What was revealed was the passing away of the old order of things.

Verse 1:9 then speaks of the Judgment, or the Sentence of “destruction”.

So then the "vengeance" or "punishment" of 1:8 is that they would be sentenced to which is everlasting destruction.

Everlasting destruction means a permanent destruction Written in history. Like saying “my words shall not pass away”. There is a permanent record. The punishment however, relates to an "ego", not a the "person" in the sense that the person would come through this and the ego orientation would be left with the sentence. The fire was unquenchable but the chaff is burnt up. The fire was not an ongoing judgment as if an ongoing application. It was an unquenchable fire because the sentence could not be reversed.

The old covenant stood upon the ego-man. Paul is saying that they would go down in history as one that had lost their false treasures in the end of the age. The theif in the night was about to come and take all their treasures from them and so then they would no longer be "priests" from the position of having anything to say about God or speaking on God’s behalf. Their "mouth" is then "shut". As the "old" could not speak for God once the "new" came fully present.

Sodom had served as a example of "eternal fire" as they went down in history in a similar fashion.

This is the meaning of the "smoke of their torments" raising to the age of the ages as Revelation speaks about the coming end of the Holy City. The "worm never dies" because of the historical nature of an age consummating event that is forever with us.

None of these things have anything to do with post mortem torment. And such is a complete misreading of the scriptures.

So you will find eternal judgment in the Old Testament. But you will not find post mortem torment. Neither Jesus nor the Apostles nor the biblical writers taught a post mortem torment, but an historical legacy. [Yes I know that there is one parable which is very much missunderstood.]

So the old covenant man was completely forgiven but lost his historical place in the transition of the ages in AD 70.

This was the promise of everlasting destruction as foretold in the OT scriptures:

Jer 23:38 But since ye say, The burden of the LORD; therefore thus saith the LORD; Because ye say this word, The burden of the L...ORD, and I have sent unto you, saying, Ye shall not say, The burden of the LORD;

Jer 23:39 Therefore, behold, I, even I, will utterly forget you, and I will forsake you, and the city that I gave you and your fathers, [and cast you] out of my presence:

Jer 23:40 And I will bring an everlasting reproach upon you, and a perpetual shame, which shall not be forgotten.

Such did not mean that they were not "forgiven" of sins. Rather it is audience relevant to their legacy.

Eze 16:61 Then thou shalt remember thy ways, and be ashamed, when thou shalt receive thy sisters, thine elder and thy younger: and I will give them unto thee for daughters, but not by thy covenant.

Eze 16:62 And I will establish my covenant with thee; and thou shalt know that I [am] the LORD:

Eze 16:63 That thou mayest remember, and be confounded, and never open thy mouth any more because of thy shame, when I am pacified toward thee for all that thou hast done, saith the Lord GOD.

And so this was fully accomplished or fulfilled in AD 70:

Dan 9:24 Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.

The point being that, which which had headed up the Adam status in old covenant times did pass away. The old could not get into the new. This was the “threat” of the kingdom at hand for the old covenant creature.

And so then:

Rev 11:15 And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become [the kingdoms] of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.

We are now in the legacy of Christ.

By Barry J DuPont

http://infinite-grace.com/

Is the Great Tribulation Ahead? by William Bell

The great tribulation prophecy in the Old Testament continues to baffle readers of the Bible.  Is this event soon to occur? Should we be fear? For those who are Preterists, we know that this concern is totally unfounded. There is not such notion as a tribulation in our future related to any of the end times prophecies of the Bible. There are no signs of the times that signal such an event is near.

Yet, many will never take the time and read to discover the simplicity of fulfilled Bible prophecy, at least not in the near future. The other day, I had asubscriber to cancel because they are convinced God would destroy the planet. This came right after I announced my new book, “Will Planet Earth Be Destroyed?” It had all the answers to the question and object raised by the former subscriber, but, there was no expression of interest to even read it.

Finish reading the article at:

http://www.allthingsfulfilled.com/eschatology/is-the-great-tribulation-ahead#more-3278

2 Peter 3: End of Heaven and Earth? by William Bell

Study of apocalyptic language in the Old Testament used to describe the destruction of heaven and earth and the key to understanding 2 Peter 3 by William Bell - http://AllThingsFulfilled.com

The Death of (Spiritual) Death - The Last Enemy to Be Defeated

Source: http://www.talk-grace.com/content.php?121-The-Death-of-Death

54b"Death has been swallowed up in victory." 55 "Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?" 56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.” (1 Cor 15:54b-56 NRSV)

We preterists know that “The last enemy to be destroyed is death.” This occurred at Christ’s Second Coming in AD70 when He destroyed old Jerusalem. But what significance does that have for us today?

We know that “sin came into the world through one man, and death came through sin, and so death spread to all because all have sinned” (Romans 5:12). This one man, Adam, introduced death to the mass of humanity, through no choice of their own. Some would argue that they had a choice, but that is not indicated in the text of scripture. The context points out that death reigned from Adam to Moses, even though the Law had not been given during that time. But through Moses came the Law. In Romans 5:13, it says, “sin was indeed in the world before the law, but sin is not reckoned when there is no law.” 

Paul further describes the result like this:

7 What then should we say? That the law is sin? By no means! Yet, if it had not been for the law, I would not have known sin. I would not have known what it is to covet if the law had not said, "You shall not covet." 8 But sin, seizing an opportunity in the commandment, produced in me all kinds of covetousness. Apart from the law sin lies dead. 9 I was once alive apart from the law, but when the commandment came, sin revived 10 and I died, and the very commandment that promised life proved to be death to me. 11 For sin, seizing an opportunity in the commandment, deceived me and through it killed me. (Rom 7:7-11 NRSV)

In this we know that the sting of death is sin. Sin resulted in death indiscriminately. Death’s sting is removed when sin is eliminated. But, man could not choose life, for whoever was guilty of breaking one commandment was guilty of the entire law. All it took was one infraction, and death was the result. Therefore, as it says in the scripture, “all died” because “all sinned”.

The opening scripture makes a tremendous claim of the law. While Paul again and again tells his first century audience that the Law is good, he does not hesitate to point out that it was the Law that brought the consciousness of sin, and thus death. Paul’s plea in Romans 7 was “o wretched man that I am, who will save me from this body of death?” The body of death he spoke of was the “body of Moses”, and it was Jesus, and his death, burial, resurrection, and second coming in AD70 that saved us from it.

But the question that most of us don’t seem to know the answer to is: “How comprehensive was God’s grace?” Necessary to answering this question is to answer the question of how comprehensive death was? Did it extend to all men?

Some may object that if man died through the Law, then what about those non-Jews who were not “under the Law”. Paul makes it clear that if a man who is not under the Law does the works of the Law, he is justified by those works. This would imply that if he did not keep that Law, he would experience the kind of death spoken of in the scriptures – spiritual death, separation from God. All humanity was separated from God in death, although their sins were not held against them, since there was no law.

But if all sinned, and all died, does the Law indeed have anything to do with that? The opening scriptures state that “the power of sin is the Law”. Is anyone besides me here seeing a connection? Death reigned, and when the commandment came, it brought death. Man was unable to please God, even when trying to be good.

Jesus told his followers that he came to fulfill the Law, not to destroy it. Yet, how was Jesus going to destroy death, as is stated in the 1 Cor 15 scripture quoted above, but leave the Law intact? The Law was what brought death. Part of the problem in the understanding here has to do with the English words chosen to translate the Greek words in the text. When Jesus said that he was not going to destroy the Law, he used the word kataluo, which means to “disintegrate”. But when Paul says that Jesus would destroy death, he uses the wordkatargeo, which means “to render useless”. And this is what Jesus did in AD70: he destroyed, rendered useless, the Law. With the destruction of the Law, sin was rendered powerless, and death was destroyed. Death was dead.

We are living in the post-Parousia (Second Coming) world of what some call “The Messianic Age”, or “The Age of Grace”. It would also rightly be termed, “The Post-Death Age”. But if we are post-death; if death has been rendered useless and the Law no longer condemns, what is it that Jesus “saves” us from today? Death is dead. All who were dead in Adam, are made alive in Christ. This is the completion of the promise. 
While the firstfruits (the believers before Jesus’ Second Coming) had a specific purpose in the first century, through which that purpose was fulfilled through faith, today’s people have a different purpose. Our good news that we share is no longer “live lives pleasing to God”, but “God is pleased with you, live in that reality”. Is it not ironic that the more religion preaches how much God does not like us, and how much we are failing to keep his Law, the more the society sinks into the depths of despair? This must change.

Death is dead. Jesus has brought life. It is imperative that we get that message out. All people should live in that reality, for death is dead. It is nullified. It has been destroyed. Glory be to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

By Ed Burley
Source: http://www.talk-grace.com/content.php?121-The-Death-of-Death

Was The Bible Written To Us or For Us? by Allen Brooks

By Allen Brooks
http://allencommentary.blogspot.com/2010/08/was-bible-written-to-you-or-for-you.html


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When I ask the question, was the Bible written to you, most folks respond and say that it was written to them. I would like to address that assumption from both the Old Testament and the New Testament.

Almost everyone agrees that the 39 books of the Old Testament from Genesis to Malachi were written only to the Israelites by Israelites. These Israelites were Moses, David, and the Prophets. The 613 laws of the Torah were for Israelites only. The Psalms and the major and minor prophetic books were also written to Israel because they contained the laws and prophecies that belong only to Israel. But, these folk also state that the Old Testament was written for us, especially when it comes to the Ten Commandments.

If the Old Testament was written to us, then we should be obeying its sayings.
Let us list some of its sayings:

We must have a high priest to offer sacrifices for our sins. Leviticus 16.

•  The High Priest will kill a goat of sin offering for the people.

And the man that committeth adultery with another man’s wife, the adulterer and the adulteress shall be put to death. Leviticus 20.

•  Remember the Sabbath Day (Saturday) to keep it holy.
• You shall not eat the flesh of pigs, it is unclean for you. Leviticus 11.
• He that smitteth his father or his mother shall be surely put to death. Exodus 21
• He that curseth his father or mother shall be surely put to death. Exodus 21
• If thou lend money to the poor, thou shalt not charge him interest. Exodus 22
• And thou shalt take no gift: for the gift blindeth the wise. Exodus 23.
• Three times thou shalt keep a feast unto me in the year: feast of unleaven bread, feast of harvest, and feast of firstfruits. Exodus 23.

Matthew 5:18, Jesus said, “For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, not one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled”.

Now, I have a question, were the above laws written to you or to Israel? Were they written for you? What does “for you” mean verses “to you”? Wouldn’t for you mean that the Old Testament was written to the Jews, but for us today, to know what happened to Israel from their beginning up to the time of Jesus and to the end of Israel’s theocratic nation? Is it fair to say that the Old Testament is the New Testament concealed, and the New Testament is the Old Testament revealed?

What is the Old Testament (Covenant) about?

It is about God creating mankind and everything in it. It is about mankind’s fall (casting out of the presence of God), God’s plan for mankind’s redemption (being put back into God’s presence) through a chosen people and a chosen person (Jesus). It is about this Seed (Jesus) coming through the linage of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob to redeem mankind.
It is about the virgin birth, life, death, resurrection, ascension, return, and kingship of God’s Son Jesus. It is about Jesus’ everlasting kingdom, of which there shall be no end. It is about the first and last days of covenant Israel as God’s chosen people from whom Jesus would be born.

I conclude that the Old Testament was written for us, but to Israel. It is the history of Israel and God’s relationship with them until the SEED would be born who would become the Savior of the world. It contains everything written in the New Testament and was quoted by Jesus and the Apostle’s during their lifetime and ministries. Every scripture these men preached came from the Old Testament!

Now let us move to the New Testament (Covenant) and determine if it was written to us or for us. Let assume first that it was written TO us.

Let us look at some passages:
Matthew 19:21-“Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me.”
Matthew 28:19-“Go ye therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”

Matthew 10-“And as ye go, preach, saying the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils; freely ye have received, freely give. Provide neither gold, nor silver, nor brass in your purses. Nor scrip for your journey, neither two coats, neither shoes, nor yet saves; for the workman is worthy of his meat.” Why is everyone preaching the end of the world instead of the Kingdom of God?
Mark 6- “And he called unto him the twelve, and began to send them forth two by two; and gave them power over unclean spirits; and commanded them that they should take nothing for their journey, save a staff only; no scrip, no bread, no money in their purse. But be shod with sandals; and not put on two coats.”

Luke 9- “Then he called his twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority over all devils; and to cure diseases and he sent them to preach the kingdom of God, and to heal the sick. And he said unto them, take nothing for your journey, neither staves, nor scrip, neither bread, neither money; neither have two coats apiece.”

Mark 16- “And these signs shall follow them that believe: in my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues.”
They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.”
Acts 2:35-“Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remissions of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” Most folks believe that one repents, receives the Holy Spirit, and then is baptized. So why is this scripture saying something different?

1 Corinthians 14:34-35-“Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience as also saith the law. And if they will learn any thing; let them ask their husbands at home; for it is a shame for women to speak in the church.”

1 Corinthians 14:39-“Wherefore brethren, covet to prophesy, and forbid not to speak with tongues.”
Would you not agree that if the New Testament was written TO us, then these scriptures pertain to us and that we should obey them? Sell all that we have and give to the poor, go preach the gospel and take nothing with us, women should keep silent in the church, we should heal the sick, cast out devils, and drink any deadly thing and it will not hurt us.
This would be true if these scriptures were written to us. And if they were, where is the evidence today of any of the activity listed in the above scriptures?

I make the assumption that the New Testament was written for us and not to us.
In the scriptures there are relevant audiences, contexts, and specific time frames for the events. There are beyond a doubt the use of personal pronouns that the texts belong to.
The errors of Bible students today, has caused so much confusion in different denominations and caused folks to be split over their orthodoxy.
When the New Testament scriptures are taken in context and in reference to all the Old Testament scriptures, one can easily see that the New Testament is the fulfillment of ALL promises God made in the Old Testament.

Matthew 5:18, Jesus said, “For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, not one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled”.
So, are we under the law or are we under GRACE? If we are under GRACE, then ALL of the law (Genesis to Malachi) has passed.

Romans 15:8, “Now I say that Jesus Christ was a minister of the circumcision [Jews] for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made unto the fathers”. And that the Gentiles might glorify God for His mercy [hesed]; as it is written, “For this cause, I will confess to thee among the Gentiles, and sing unto thy name.’[Psalms 18]

Galations 4-“For when the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth His son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoptions of sons.”

Jeremiah 31-33-“Behold the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah. Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the days that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them saith the Lord. But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws in their inward parts, and write in in their hearts and will be their God and they shall be my people..I will forgive their iniquity, and I remember their sin no more.” The Bible is the history of God’s fulfillment of His promises to mankind through Israel and Jesus.

By Allen Brooks

http://allencommentary.blogspot.com/2010/08/was-bible-written-to-you-or-for-you.html

Christ Already Returned... Here's Why by Allen D. Brooks

Under the old covenant, the Mosaic Covenant, in Leviticus, chapter nine, the Day of Atonement and the Priestly functions are described. 

Once each year, the High Priest, in this case, Aaron, would offer the sin offering for all of the sins of the people. This ritual or ceremony consisted of several steps.

First, the Priest, himself, had to be cleansed. The Mosaic Law required that the Priest be from the tribe of Levi. This was demanded in the law.

Second, a calf or ram or lamb without blemish had to be sacrificed.(killed)

Third, the High Priest entered the Holy Of Holies in the Tabernacle and would take the blood of the slain lamb and sprinkle the blood on the mercy seat of the Ark of the Covenant for the sins of all the people.

Fourth, the High Priest would then emerge from the Holy of Holies and show himself to the people as a sign that God had accepted the blood sacrifice as forgiveness of their sins.

Each and every step had to be completely fulfilled in order for the atonement to be complete or consummated. The word consummate is very important. It means complete in every detail.  As a verb, it means to make complete. Therefore, all the details of the Priestly functions had to be complete or consummated in order for the atonement or the reconciliation of the people back to God, be complete. This is very, very important!  Not one step could be skipped. The ritual had to be done over and over every year because it was done by man and with the blood of a lamb. It was temporary.

Now the Bible plainly says that the tabernacle, the mercy seat, and all of the elements of the Priestly functions were shadows or types of the real things in heaven. The earthly ones (seen) were temporary, but the heavenly (not seen) were eternal. These were the type of that which would come when Christ came into the world. The book of Hebrews explains this typology in every detail.

Jesus Christ was born into the world to become the lamb or sacrifice. Jesus was without sin or blemish; therefore, Jesus qualified as the sacrifice and shed His blood upon a cross for mankind.

However, Jesus’ blood had to be sprinkled upon the mercy seat in the Holy of Holies in heaven by a heavenly High Priest. The cross inaugurated the atonement but did not consummate the atonement. We know this because there was yet to be a resurrection of Jesus, the giving of the Holy Spirit, and the bringing in of the Kingdom of God. These were all future from the cross and were part of the atonement. Paul says, “if Christ is not risen, we are still in our sins”. We can see that the resurrection was part of our atonement and that was after the cross.

 This presents several problems, but they are solved.

First, Jesus was from the tribe of Judah not Levi. Hebrews 7:14 states: “For it is evident that our Lord sprang out of Judah; of which tribe Moses spake nothing concerning priesthood.” So, Jesus could not become our High Priest until there was a change in the law, the Mosaic Covenant Law. Hebrews 7:12 states” For the priesthood being changed, there is made of necessity a change also of the law.”

Therefore, Jesus fulfilled all the law and the prophets thus changing the covenant from law to grace. As a result, Jesus became our High Priest.

Hebrews 9, states: “the Holy Ghost, thus signifying that the way into the Holy of Holies was not yet made manifest as long as the earthly tabernacle was still standing.”

Secondly, Jesus destroyed the earthly temple in Jerusalem with the Roman armies in AD 70 therefore opening the way into the Holy of Holies in heaven. Now, Jesus as our High Priest entered into the Holy of Holies in heaven and offered His own blood on the mercy seat. Hebrews 9:24 says, “For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands which are the figures of the true, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us.” The killing of the lamb did not provide the atonement, but the spreading of the lambs blood on the mercy seat of the Ark of the covenant did. Therefore, Jesus’ dying on the cross as the lamb of God provided the blood that would later be spread on the mercy seat in the holy of holies in heaven. 

These are two distinct events.

Acts 3:19 “Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out when the time of refreshing shall come from the presence (parousia-coming) of the Lord; and he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: Whom the heaven must receive until the time of restitution for all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began”.

Hebrews 10, verse 26..”but now once in the end of the world hath he (Jesus) appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.” We must understand that the end of the world is the end of the old covenant age, not the end of the material earth. If it were the end of the physical world, then we are still in our sins because this says” Jesus appeared in the end of the world to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.” This is important.

Jesus sprinkled His own blood on the mercy seat in the Holy of Holies as our High Priest after the law and the earthly tabernacle were destroyed in AD 70.

Now, there is one more detail that must be completed in order for this heavenly atonement to fulfill the requirements given in Leviticus 9. The High Priest must emerge from the Holy of Holies showing himself to the congregation as a sign that God has accepted the sacrifice for sins.

Hebrews 10: 28 says, “So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many, and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.”

Hebrews 10:21 says, “ and having  a High Priest over the house of God, let us draw near. Verse 25 says, “not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is, but exhorting one another, and so much more, as you see the day approaching.

Verse 37 says, “For yet a little while, and He that shall come will come, and will not tarry.”

I know this may be difficult for some of you, but if the High Priest did not come out of the Holy of Holies, then the atonement for sins is incomplete. The high Priest had to show himself to the congregation as the sign that the blood sacrifice was accepted by God and the people’s sins forgiven!

This is why the disciples asked Jesus in Matthew 24, what shall be the sign of your coming or appearing?

Jesus told his disciples that these things: the destruction of the temple, the destruction of Jerusalem, the passing of the Old Mosaic Covenant, and the end of the age were the sign of His appearing. This is the emerging of the High Priest from the heavenly Holy of Holies.

If our High Priest has not appeared, the atonement is not completed and we are still under the law and in our sins. But the Bible plainly says He has appeared and our sins are forgiven because God accepted the sacrifice of His Son’s blood upon the mercy seat in the Holy of Holies in heaven. Amen!

Written by Allen D. Brooks

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God Is All In All

by Barry DuPont
http://infinite-grace.com

Eschatology is the study of end times or last days. 

It is my view that the major problem with studying this subject is looking out the window. 
The reason why that is a problem is that we belive what we see. 
The reason why we belive what we see is because we belive that how we behave makes or defines truth. We believe that, because we think that it is actually possible to be separate from God and be separate from his love. We actually think that we can be independent. 

So this effects every school of eschatological thought. 
Just look out the window! 
Is everyone praising God? 
Can you not see all the sin? 
Do we look like we have Unity? 

So every school of eschatology, every version of when and how fulfillment comes and every version of what is "ongoing" and what is not is effected by this "looking out the window". Whether futurist for full preterist, the window presents the same basic problem. 

But biblical eschatology is not studied by looking out the window. It's studied by what God declares is true by revelation of such in human history. What we see out that window has little to nothing to do with it. The reason for that is because eschatology deals with the time of childhood to adulthood and that transition.

Childhood had types and figures, anti-types and allegories, shadows and all that stuff. Even Adam was a type or figure. 
There were toys we played with in childhood, and even toys that God said that we really would be better of not having like "law" and "kings". 
Then there is the transition from Childhood to Adulthood when God says, "I'm taking away your toys now". 

Studying eschatology by looking out the window is like grabbing for the toys again and not realizing they are really no longer there. 
We are not "One" because we stop fighting and arguing and hating. Because we don't MAKE oneness. Oneness is a truth that is realized and then implemented. The implementation of that truth does not make it true it makes it implemented. The principle that our implementation of Unity makes Unity true is called the old covenant age. And it passed away. 

It was the delusion of a childhood identity crises permitted to run its predetermined course. It's where types and figures had precedence in the absence of a revelation of love without condition. 

The revelation of God's love without condition did away with the toys. Our realization and continued implementation of the truth is the ongoing perpetual efficacy which is "glory" given to those who overcame that "world" in the transition, which we read about in the New Testament writtings. 

Love is it's own reward. God's gift to us is himself and each other. And that was the point all along. Man cannot be separate from God. Man can think he can be and was even permitted to carry that identity, that self, for a time of childhood that God deemed necessary for our growth. Then Christ came to reveal the Father and free us from our self defined selves. 

And God is all in all. 

Was it just a delusion? I don't believe that at all. No, it was our childhood. 
The implementation of sectarianism and ethnicity, and trying to wear cloths of our own independent identity was all part of a very real childhood experience. One the prophets knew would end. They also knew that God did not dwell in temples made with hands. They knew that they had figures and types of things yet to come. Which did come as Christ revealed the Father and fulfilled all things. 
We took the first step and became like God knowing good and evil. But God knows good and evil as a step toward something more not as a final conclusion. That that is what we could not see once in that knowledge. Now we know something far more. Love without conditions. 

It is impossible to have both law and love without condition together. They cannot be mixed. You either have one or the other. Either love has conditions or it does not. Either God's love has conditions or it does not. Once love without condition is fully revealed then you no longer see in a mirror dimly. Which is fulfilled in those who overcame that world. 

Once the revelation of love without condition is made manifest, historically speaking, then there is no law and no sin. It is then, taken away. You cannot have some separated from that love and some not. It either is or it is not. God is either love or he is not. He is either God or he is not. We are either one or we are not. 

God took our belief out of the picture and said we are one. Our belief can lead to the implementation of truth, but it cannot establish it. 

These are my present view. I'm very much open to discussing them with whoever wishes to examine or look more closely at these ideas and what this all means to us and such. 

Barry 
http://infinite-grace.com/
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