Friday, July 25, 2014, 6:00 a.m. – the Lord Jesus put the song in mind, “To Be Like Him.” Speak, Lord, your words to my heart. I read Jeremiah 30 (NIV).
A Time of Trouble
It appears, from historical accounts, that this prophecy was at least partially fulfilled somewhere between 609 BC and 539 BC. The Israelites were taken captive by King Neb of Babylon as a judgment of God upon them, and they remained in captivity for a period of 70 years. At the end of that time, Cyrus conquered Babylon and allowed the Jews to return to Jerusalem. The city was restored and the second temple was built (the temple rebuilt).
From what I can gather, and from what I have read in Isaiah and Jeremiah, it appears to me, and I am not alone in this thought, that the 70 years of captivity was a prefiguring of the 7 years of tribulation, and Cyrus was a prefiguring of Christ, who is “David,” our king. He will return for his people, will judge those he allowed to judge us, and he will restore the land to us in his millennial kingdom, at which time we will rule and will reign with him.
And, yet, I see another 70 years present here, and another Babylon of our day and time which I believe is spoken about in the book of Revelation. I believe Mystery Babylon, the Great Prostitute, is the U.S. government and their allies in the U.N. (+ the institutional church of the west, which is in bed with the government). When WWII ended in 1945, the U.S. rose to become the world’s super power. Next year may mark the 70th anniversary of their superpower status, though I am making NO predictions here whatsoever.
The statistics vary, depending upon the source, but it would appear that the U.S. has established control over perhaps as many as 200 countries worldwide and that we have military deployments in more than 150 countries. Depending upon the source, we may have as many as up to 1,000 U.S. military bases outside of our own country worldwide. And, we are 70% of the NATO forces in Afghanistan alone. Our nation (plus their allies) creates situations (false flag operations) so that they can go in to other countries to take them over. We have been doing this a very long time. We are the world terrorists. First we kick the squirrels out of their nest, and then we go in to “save” them – NOT! We go in as conquerors bent on conquest. We kill, pillage, rape and destroy in order to gain control.
The things talked about in Revelation concerning the antichrist and concerning the conquering of peoples and nations and the persecution and murdering of the saints of Almighty God are happening now, and they are happening at the hands of the U.S. government, under the orders of the Elite and powerful of the world, and in cooperation with the U.S.’s allies, including the nation of Israel. So, are we already in the period of time known as the tribulation? I don’t know. And, I also don’t know if the seven years are a literal seven years or not, either. Maybe these are the birth pains. If they are, they are pretty bad in some parts of the world. “Cries of fear are heard – terror, not peace.”
Another thing that occurs to me here, with regard to the fulfillment of this passage in the end of time, is that Israel is now the church, because the physical nation of Israel is no longer God’s people, and the city of Jerusalem is now of Hagar, the slave woman. Only the children of promise, i.e. the true Body of Christ, the church, are God’s chosen people, so only we can be in adultery against our Lord. The Jews, if they do not know Jesus, are the same as the Gentiles who do not know Jesus. They need to be saved, but they are not God’s people being judged for their idolatry and spiritual adultery. This can only apply to the adulterous church of the last days.
Future Restoration
We read in Revelation 2-3 concerning warnings to the church which is living in spiritual adultery and idolatry that they must repent of their wickedness or face the judgment of God. I believe God will judge his adulterous church, and perhaps this has already begun, yet not to destroy her, but to save her out of slavery to those who have taken her captive to do their will, and/or from those who have deceived her, and to whom or to which she is now giving her allegiance and devotion. He will judge her in order to revive her and to bring her back into proper fellowship with him. Then he will come to deliver her from this earth, and she will reign and will rule with him on the earth during his millennial kingdom reign. That is when she will truly experience peace and security, and no one will make her afraid. Amen!
So, when we think of Jerusalem and the temple being restored and rebuilt at the end of days, we have to interpret this in light of the cross of Christ. Since Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins, and was resurrected, only those who have believed in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior are the people of God; the children of promise. We are the heavenly Jerusalem, the City of God, the temple of the Holy Spirit in whom Christ dwells by his Spirit. So it is us who will be restored and rebuilt, i.e. the church will be revived and we will become what God intended us to be all along. Amen! No longer will the church be in captivity to those who now deceive her and who wield power over her, for God will wake her in judgment so that her eyes are opened and she will see what she is now blinded to. Amen!
When Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins, he crucified our sins with him, and through his resurrection he conquered hell, Satan, death and sin. Through faith in him, we can be delivered from the ultimate penalty of sin – eternal damnation – and from slavery to sin, and we can be set free to love, honor, worship, and obey our Lord Jesus, and to walk in his ways the rest of our lives, in the power and working of the Spirit within us. That is the captivity that Jesus came to deliver us out of. Our relationship with God is then restored to what it was before the fall of man in the Garden. And, we now have the hope of eternal life with God in heaven. [See: Ro. 6-8; 2 Co. 5:15; Gal. 2:20; Eph. 4:17-24; Tit. 2:11-14; & 1 Jn. 1-5.]
So, in some ways, we have been in a period of tribulation ever since the church had its beginnings, and Jesus’ return for us will be our deliverance. Our physical restoration will be during the millennial kingdom reign of Christ, during which time we will rule and will reign with him on the earth. Oh, how I look forward to the day I get to be with him forever!
To Be Like Him / An Original Work
March 16, 2014 / Based off Scripture
Crucified you are with Jesus.
To be like Him, oh, you’ll be,
Because He died at Calv’ry,
So from sin you’d be free.
Oh, what joy He brings into your life,
Giving life with Him endlessly.
Oh, what plans He has for your life.
Share the gospel faithfully.
Show the people He loves them.
Now His witness you’ll be.
Tell the world of sin about Jesus,
How He died for them on a tree.
Purifying hearts, He saves them,
Who believe on Christ, God’s Son.
Turning now from their idols,
New lives they have begun.
Jesus saves from sin; we’re forgiven.
Over sin, the vict’ry He won!
When He comes again to take us
To be with Him evermore,
There will be no more crying.
Gladness will be in store.
Heavens joys will now overtake us:
We’ll be with our Lord evermore.
http://originalworks.info/to-be-like-him/
A Time of Trouble
This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Write in a book all the words I have spoken to you. The days are coming,’ declares the Lord, ‘when I will bring my people Israel and Judah back from captivity and restore them to the land I gave their ancestors to possess,’ says the Lord.”
These are the words the Lord spoke concerning Israel and Judah: “This is what the Lord says:
“’…How awful that day will be!
No other will be like it.
It will be a time of trouble for Jacob,
but he will be saved out of it.
“‘In that day,’ declares the Lord Almighty,
‘I will break the yoke off their necks
and will tear off their bonds;
no longer will foreigners enslave them.
Instead, they will serve the Lord their God
and David their king,
whom I will raise up for them.
“‘So do not be afraid, Jacob my servant;
do not be dismayed, Israel,’
declares the Lord.
‘I will surely save you out of a distant place,
your descendants from the land of their exile.
Jacob will again have peace and security,
and no one will make him afraid.
I am with you and will save you,’
declares the Lord.
‘Though I completely destroy all the nations
among which I scatter you,
I will not completely destroy you.
I will discipline you but only in due measure;
I will not let you go entirely unpunished.’ ~ vv. 1-11
These are the words the Lord spoke concerning Israel and Judah: “This is what the Lord says:
“’…How awful that day will be!
No other will be like it.
It will be a time of trouble for Jacob,
but he will be saved out of it.
“‘In that day,’ declares the Lord Almighty,
‘I will break the yoke off their necks
and will tear off their bonds;
no longer will foreigners enslave them.
Instead, they will serve the Lord their God
and David their king,
whom I will raise up for them.
“‘So do not be afraid, Jacob my servant;
do not be dismayed, Israel,’
declares the Lord.
‘I will surely save you out of a distant place,
your descendants from the land of their exile.
Jacob will again have peace and security,
and no one will make him afraid.
I am with you and will save you,’
declares the Lord.
‘Though I completely destroy all the nations
among which I scatter you,
I will not completely destroy you.
I will discipline you but only in due measure;
I will not let you go entirely unpunished.’ ~ vv. 1-11
It appears, from historical accounts, that this prophecy was at least partially fulfilled somewhere between 609 BC and 539 BC. The Israelites were taken captive by King Neb of Babylon as a judgment of God upon them, and they remained in captivity for a period of 70 years. At the end of that time, Cyrus conquered Babylon and allowed the Jews to return to Jerusalem. The city was restored and the second temple was built (the temple rebuilt).
From what I can gather, and from what I have read in Isaiah and Jeremiah, it appears to me, and I am not alone in this thought, that the 70 years of captivity was a prefiguring of the 7 years of tribulation, and Cyrus was a prefiguring of Christ, who is “David,” our king. He will return for his people, will judge those he allowed to judge us, and he will restore the land to us in his millennial kingdom, at which time we will rule and will reign with him.
And, yet, I see another 70 years present here, and another Babylon of our day and time which I believe is spoken about in the book of Revelation. I believe Mystery Babylon, the Great Prostitute, is the U.S. government and their allies in the U.N. (+ the institutional church of the west, which is in bed with the government). When WWII ended in 1945, the U.S. rose to become the world’s super power. Next year may mark the 70th anniversary of their superpower status, though I am making NO predictions here whatsoever.
The statistics vary, depending upon the source, but it would appear that the U.S. has established control over perhaps as many as 200 countries worldwide and that we have military deployments in more than 150 countries. Depending upon the source, we may have as many as up to 1,000 U.S. military bases outside of our own country worldwide. And, we are 70% of the NATO forces in Afghanistan alone. Our nation (plus their allies) creates situations (false flag operations) so that they can go in to other countries to take them over. We have been doing this a very long time. We are the world terrorists. First we kick the squirrels out of their nest, and then we go in to “save” them – NOT! We go in as conquerors bent on conquest. We kill, pillage, rape and destroy in order to gain control.
The things talked about in Revelation concerning the antichrist and concerning the conquering of peoples and nations and the persecution and murdering of the saints of Almighty God are happening now, and they are happening at the hands of the U.S. government, under the orders of the Elite and powerful of the world, and in cooperation with the U.S.’s allies, including the nation of Israel. So, are we already in the period of time known as the tribulation? I don’t know. And, I also don’t know if the seven years are a literal seven years or not, either. Maybe these are the birth pains. If they are, they are pretty bad in some parts of the world. “Cries of fear are heard – terror, not peace.”
Another thing that occurs to me here, with regard to the fulfillment of this passage in the end of time, is that Israel is now the church, because the physical nation of Israel is no longer God’s people, and the city of Jerusalem is now of Hagar, the slave woman. Only the children of promise, i.e. the true Body of Christ, the church, are God’s chosen people, so only we can be in adultery against our Lord. The Jews, if they do not know Jesus, are the same as the Gentiles who do not know Jesus. They need to be saved, but they are not God’s people being judged for their idolatry and spiritual adultery. This can only apply to the adulterous church of the last days.
Future Restoration
“This is what the Lord says:
“‘I will restore the fortunes of Jacob’s tents
and have compassion on his dwellings;
the city will be rebuilt on her ruins,
and the palace will stand in its proper place.
From them will come songs of thanksgiving
and the sound of rejoicing.
I will add to their numbers,
and they will not be decreased;
I will bring them honor,
and they will not be disdained.
Their children will be as in days of old,
and their community will be established before me;
I will punish all who oppress them.
Their leader will be one of their own;
their ruler will arise from among them.
I will bring him near and he will come close to me—
for who is he who will devote himself
to be close to me?’
declares the Lord.
“‘So you will be my people,
and I will be your God.’”
See, the storm of the Lord
will burst out in wrath,
a driving wind swirling down
on the heads of the wicked.
The fierce anger of the Lord will not turn back
until he fully accomplishes
the purposes of his heart.
In days to come
you will understand this. ~ vv. 18-24
“‘I will restore the fortunes of Jacob’s tents
and have compassion on his dwellings;
the city will be rebuilt on her ruins,
and the palace will stand in its proper place.
From them will come songs of thanksgiving
and the sound of rejoicing.
I will add to their numbers,
and they will not be decreased;
I will bring them honor,
and they will not be disdained.
Their children will be as in days of old,
and their community will be established before me;
I will punish all who oppress them.
Their leader will be one of their own;
their ruler will arise from among them.
I will bring him near and he will come close to me—
for who is he who will devote himself
to be close to me?’
declares the Lord.
“‘So you will be my people,
and I will be your God.’”
See, the storm of the Lord
will burst out in wrath,
a driving wind swirling down
on the heads of the wicked.
The fierce anger of the Lord will not turn back
until he fully accomplishes
the purposes of his heart.
In days to come
you will understand this. ~ vv. 18-24
We read in Revelation 2-3 concerning warnings to the church which is living in spiritual adultery and idolatry that they must repent of their wickedness or face the judgment of God. I believe God will judge his adulterous church, and perhaps this has already begun, yet not to destroy her, but to save her out of slavery to those who have taken her captive to do their will, and/or from those who have deceived her, and to whom or to which she is now giving her allegiance and devotion. He will judge her in order to revive her and to bring her back into proper fellowship with him. Then he will come to deliver her from this earth, and she will reign and will rule with him on the earth during his millennial kingdom reign. That is when she will truly experience peace and security, and no one will make her afraid. Amen!
So, when we think of Jerusalem and the temple being restored and rebuilt at the end of days, we have to interpret this in light of the cross of Christ. Since Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins, and was resurrected, only those who have believed in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior are the people of God; the children of promise. We are the heavenly Jerusalem, the City of God, the temple of the Holy Spirit in whom Christ dwells by his Spirit. So it is us who will be restored and rebuilt, i.e. the church will be revived and we will become what God intended us to be all along. Amen! No longer will the church be in captivity to those who now deceive her and who wield power over her, for God will wake her in judgment so that her eyes are opened and she will see what she is now blinded to. Amen!
When Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins, he crucified our sins with him, and through his resurrection he conquered hell, Satan, death and sin. Through faith in him, we can be delivered from the ultimate penalty of sin – eternal damnation – and from slavery to sin, and we can be set free to love, honor, worship, and obey our Lord Jesus, and to walk in his ways the rest of our lives, in the power and working of the Spirit within us. That is the captivity that Jesus came to deliver us out of. Our relationship with God is then restored to what it was before the fall of man in the Garden. And, we now have the hope of eternal life with God in heaven. [See: Ro. 6-8; 2 Co. 5:15; Gal. 2:20; Eph. 4:17-24; Tit. 2:11-14; & 1 Jn. 1-5.]
So, in some ways, we have been in a period of tribulation ever since the church had its beginnings, and Jesus’ return for us will be our deliverance. Our physical restoration will be during the millennial kingdom reign of Christ, during which time we will rule and will reign with him on the earth. Oh, how I look forward to the day I get to be with him forever!
To Be Like Him / An Original Work
March 16, 2014 / Based off Scripture
Crucified you are with Jesus.
To be like Him, oh, you’ll be,
Because He died at Calv’ry,
So from sin you’d be free.
Oh, what joy He brings into your life,
Giving life with Him endlessly.
Oh, what plans He has for your life.
Share the gospel faithfully.
Show the people He loves them.
Now His witness you’ll be.
Tell the world of sin about Jesus,
How He died for them on a tree.
Purifying hearts, He saves them,
Who believe on Christ, God’s Son.
Turning now from their idols,
New lives they have begun.
Jesus saves from sin; we’re forgiven.
Over sin, the vict’ry He won!
When He comes again to take us
To be with Him evermore,
There will be no more crying.
Gladness will be in store.
Heavens joys will now overtake us:
We’ll be with our Lord evermore.
http://originalworks.info/to-be-like-him/