What do I mean? Let me start with some background. After the death of Alexander the Great his empire was divided up among his four generals. One of the four, Antiochus Epiphanes, took control over the land of the Jews and began to impose the Greek culture upon them. In 167 B.C. he stepped up his campaign by issuing a series of draconian decrees that virtually prohibited the Jews from practicing their religion under penalty of death, and forced them to worship Greek gods instead. He then defiled the temple by sacrificing a pig in the Holy of Holies to the god Zeus.
Finally, the Jews rebelled under the leadership of the Maccabees and overthrew the Greeks. They then cleansed the temple and their culture from the Greek defilement and restored their God-given religion. Their victory is celebrated today in the Jewish holiday known as Hanukkah (meaning “dedication”).
What I now realize is that we who are part of the New Covenant assembly of believers need to rise up and do the same thing. Not physically, but spiritually. Because the same Greek culture has also defiled our worship and hindered our service to God as defined under the New Covenant. The defilement began shortly after Jesus went up into Heaven. It came mainly by way of the so-called early Church Fathers whose teachings were heavily influenced by pagan Greek philosophers, such as Plato, Socrates and Aristotle. And also with the help of a Jew named Philo who lived around the time of Jesus. His writings almost undid the work of the Maccabees in his attempt to re-Hellenize Judaism, insisting Moses was the source of much Greek philosophy.
In time, the Church Father's teachings evolved into the approved doctrines and religious practices that became known as Roman Catholicism. Although the Reformation introduced many important reforms, it was never able to fully delver us from Catholicism itself. This is evidenced by our continuation of the Catholic hierarchical system, the division of the body into clergy and laity, the unscriptural holy days, and the construction of earthly temples spoken of as “God’s house.”
But most egregious of all were the doctrines formulated in the third and fourth centuries that declared under penalty of death that Yahweh, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, was a Triumvirate, a committee of three. And that Jesus was part of this Greek concept of God.
But just as God did in the time prior to Messiah’s first coming, He is planning to deliver His people again from this ungodly Hellenistic defilement and cleanse His temple, the Body of Messiah. Father God, who is Yahweh, must be restored to His rightful place as our one and only God. And Jesus must be restored to his rightful place on the throne of David. He needs to be recognized as our virgin-born Messiah, our sinless savior, mediator and high priest – but not Yahweh. He was proclaimed in the Bible to be the son of God, but never God the Son.
I know this war cry will be challenged by many who have lived their whole Christian lives under the Greek influence (as I did), and now cannot abide by any other teaching. Just as many Jews resisted the DE-Hellenization of their religion in the days of the Maccabees. But the yoke must be overthrown and the temple cleansed.
What particularly intrigues me is that Antiochus IV is often said to be a foreshadowing of the anti-Christ. Given that so many Christians adamantly believe Jesus is Yahweh, or some part of Yahweh, I can see that the false Messiah, however he is manifested, could easily “take his seat in the temple [the deceived false institutional Church] displaying himself as being God” (1 Thess. 2:4). In fact, a couple of Popes have already done just that.
Saturday, December 31, 2011
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Tabernacles
Three months ago I shared how I felt that God was about to do "a new thing"(Isaiah 43:19). And that it was all somehow tied into Isaiah's many words about "streams in the desert." Since then my understanding of the dynamics surrounding this "new thing" has grown tremendously.
It is clear to me now that this "new thing" is the fulfillment of the last of the three great Mosaic feasts in the body of Messiah, the Feast of Tabernacles. Passover was fulfilled with the death and resurrection of Jesus on the very date of that feast, and is experienced by the new birth. Pentecost also was fulfilled on the actual day of the feast with the coming of the Holy Spirit, and is experienced by the infilling of the spirit. But Tabernacles has never had its' spiritual fulfillment in the New Covenant believer - until now.
When Jesus attended the Feast of Tabernacles just before his death, he prophetically declared: "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. He who believes in me as the Scripture said, 'From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.' But this he spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive" (John 7:37-39). He was speaking of a blessing that the Church has still not fully received.
I'm sure this last-days outpouring of God's Spirit on His Church will occur on some soon-coming Feast of Tabernacles (celebrated in Sept./ Oct.), just as the other feasts were fulfilled on their dates. It will be the "latter rain" outpouring that has been so anticipated. ( I just saw that Bob Dylan will be in Israel and will sing his hit song, "A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall." Prophetic.) But the rain I'm speaking of won't be from the sky, but will come out "of our innermost beings" - our spirits - as "rivers of living water." And the effect on us and on Israel and onthe worldwide community will be dramatic.
I believe when this happens we will be imbued with the power and authority to finally put Satan under our feet. The power we often sing about but have rarely experienced. The power prophesied by David long ago when he said: "The Lord said to my Lord, sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet...Your people will volunteer freely in the day of your power; in holy array, from the womb of the dawn" (Ps. 110:1,3). This manifestation of heavenly power will fulfill the words of Jesus, that "he who believes in me, the works I do, he will also do; and greater works than these he will do because I go to the Father" (John 14:12). And in the process we will become unified as never before, as Jesus prayed: "May they all be one, even as You, Father, are in me and I in You, that they may be one in us, SO THAT THE WORLD MAY BELIEVE THAT YOU SENT ME" (JOHN 17:21).
So not only will new energy, power and authority be given to his people on that day, but we will experience new unity with Jesus and the Father. And when this body of believers is unified, the glory of God will suddenly fill His temple - just as the glory filled Solomon's temple during the Feast of Tabernacles (2 Chron.5:3; 7:1,2). I believe this glory will literally radiate out from our bodily tabernacles so we become like glow sticks. It will be Jesus revealing himself through us so that the world will know God truly sent him - "when he comes to be glorified in his saints on that day" (2 Thess. 1:10). For the mystery of the Church is "Christ in you, the hope of glory" (Col. 1:27).
When we receive this outshining of his presence from within us, this prophecy of Isaiah will be fulfilled: "Arise shine for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. For behold darkness will cover the earth [already happening], and deep darkness the people; But the Lord will rise upon you, and his glory will appear upon you" (Isaiah 62:1,2).
The darker the world gets, the brighter we shall shine.
It is clear to me now that this "new thing" is the fulfillment of the last of the three great Mosaic feasts in the body of Messiah, the Feast of Tabernacles. Passover was fulfilled with the death and resurrection of Jesus on the very date of that feast, and is experienced by the new birth. Pentecost also was fulfilled on the actual day of the feast with the coming of the Holy Spirit, and is experienced by the infilling of the spirit. But Tabernacles has never had its' spiritual fulfillment in the New Covenant believer - until now.
When Jesus attended the Feast of Tabernacles just before his death, he prophetically declared: "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. He who believes in me as the Scripture said, 'From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.' But this he spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive" (John 7:37-39). He was speaking of a blessing that the Church has still not fully received.
I'm sure this last-days outpouring of God's Spirit on His Church will occur on some soon-coming Feast of Tabernacles (celebrated in Sept./ Oct.), just as the other feasts were fulfilled on their dates. It will be the "latter rain" outpouring that has been so anticipated. ( I just saw that Bob Dylan will be in Israel and will sing his hit song, "A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall." Prophetic.) But the rain I'm speaking of won't be from the sky, but will come out "of our innermost beings" - our spirits - as "rivers of living water." And the effect on us and on Israel and onthe worldwide community will be dramatic.
I believe when this happens we will be imbued with the power and authority to finally put Satan under our feet. The power we often sing about but have rarely experienced. The power prophesied by David long ago when he said: "The Lord said to my Lord, sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet...Your people will volunteer freely in the day of your power; in holy array, from the womb of the dawn" (Ps. 110:1,3). This manifestation of heavenly power will fulfill the words of Jesus, that "he who believes in me, the works I do, he will also do; and greater works than these he will do because I go to the Father" (John 14:12). And in the process we will become unified as never before, as Jesus prayed: "May they all be one, even as You, Father, are in me and I in You, that they may be one in us, SO THAT THE WORLD MAY BELIEVE THAT YOU SENT ME" (JOHN 17:21).
So not only will new energy, power and authority be given to his people on that day, but we will experience new unity with Jesus and the Father. And when this body of believers is unified, the glory of God will suddenly fill His temple - just as the glory filled Solomon's temple during the Feast of Tabernacles (2 Chron.5:3; 7:1,2). I believe this glory will literally radiate out from our bodily tabernacles so we become like glow sticks. It will be Jesus revealing himself through us so that the world will know God truly sent him - "when he comes to be glorified in his saints on that day" (2 Thess. 1:10). For the mystery of the Church is "Christ in you, the hope of glory" (Col. 1:27).
When we receive this outshining of his presence from within us, this prophecy of Isaiah will be fulfilled: "Arise shine for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. For behold darkness will cover the earth [already happening], and deep darkness the people; But the Lord will rise upon you, and his glory will appear upon you" (Isaiah 62:1,2).
The darker the world gets, the brighter we shall shine.
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Head for the Highway
There have been many great awakenings in the course of church history, especially here in America. But if I am hearing the Lord correctly, none will equal the size, scope and longevity of the one that is coming. Because I believe this will be the wave to carry us home. And I'm not talking about heaven.
As the calendar flipped to 2011, these words of Isaiah caught my attention: "Do not call to mind the former things, or ponder things from the past. Behold I will do something new, now it will spring forth, will you not be aware of it? I will make a roadway in the wilderness, rivers in the desert" (Isaiah 43:18,19).
For weeks I had been drawn to this recurring theme in Isaiah about streams in the desert, and a roadway in the wilderness, which he calls a "highway of holiness" (chapters 35, 41, 43,44). What could it all mean? Slowly I began to see it.
Although applicable to all ages, Isaiah is primarily prophesying about a time at the end of the age when God's people would be spiritually bone dry. Like the dry bones of Ezekiel 37. His people would be apathetic, backslidden, and powerless;His church as carnal as the world around. But in His mercy God would send His spirit to revive us once again.
"I will pour out water on the thirsty land and streams on the dry ground; I will pour out My spirit on your offspring and my blessings on your descendants. And they will spring up among the grass like poplars by streams of water" Isaiah 44:4,5).
This awakening will terminate the church age as we've have practiced it for the last 1800 years. For God has been trying to deliver us from the religious mindset that imprisoned us in the second and third centuries. He kept sending us anointed men like Tyndale, Luther, Whitefield, Edwards, Finney, Seymour, Graham and countless others to pull us out of our fallen states of spirituality. But once awakened we would just alter our theology a bit and march right back into our religious ways and the cycle would repeat itself. We'd soon wither and die, requiring yet another emergency rescue by God's spirit.
But when this revival hits, the cycle will end. It will no longer be church as usual. This time the old wine skins will not be able to contain the dynamic power of the spirit about to be unleashed. A whole new kind of wineskin will be needed to handle the throngs of awakened joyous believers who will spring up like poplars. And this time we won't have to submit our wine to those who would rather cork it than dance with us.
That's where the highway comes in. When Isaiah mentioned the "something new" he first reminded us of the supernatural dry road God made through the Red Sea (43: 16,17). But this time it would be different. It would not be a dry road through the sea, but a spirit-soaked pathway through the wilderness.
I believe he was saying this future revival would be our final goodbye, as when He delivered His people from slavery in Egypt. But this deliverance will be from Satan's entire world system, which is rapidly reaching critical mass, before His judgment falls.
Like the Israelites who discovered they were still within Pharaoh's grasp at the Red Sea, we too still live in Satan's Kingdom. Although we're not of this world, we are still in it. And "the whole world lies in the power of the evil one" (1 John 5:19).
But just as God opened a super highway to save His people then, He will do so for us. As Isaiah described it: "And a highway will be there, a roadway, and it will be called 'the highway of holiness'; the unclean will not travel on it, but it will be for him who walks that way. And fools will not wander up on it....And the redeemed of the Lord will return, and come with joyful shouting to Zion, with everlasting joy upon their heads. They will find gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing will flee away" (Isaiah 35:8,10).
So get excited and be expectant, knowing "we are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time" ( 1 Peter 1:5).
As the calendar flipped to 2011, these words of Isaiah caught my attention: "Do not call to mind the former things, or ponder things from the past. Behold I will do something new, now it will spring forth, will you not be aware of it? I will make a roadway in the wilderness, rivers in the desert" (Isaiah 43:18,19).
For weeks I had been drawn to this recurring theme in Isaiah about streams in the desert, and a roadway in the wilderness, which he calls a "highway of holiness" (chapters 35, 41, 43,44). What could it all mean? Slowly I began to see it.
Although applicable to all ages, Isaiah is primarily prophesying about a time at the end of the age when God's people would be spiritually bone dry. Like the dry bones of Ezekiel 37. His people would be apathetic, backslidden, and powerless;His church as carnal as the world around. But in His mercy God would send His spirit to revive us once again.
"I will pour out water on the thirsty land and streams on the dry ground; I will pour out My spirit on your offspring and my blessings on your descendants. And they will spring up among the grass like poplars by streams of water" Isaiah 44:4,5).
This awakening will terminate the church age as we've have practiced it for the last 1800 years. For God has been trying to deliver us from the religious mindset that imprisoned us in the second and third centuries. He kept sending us anointed men like Tyndale, Luther, Whitefield, Edwards, Finney, Seymour, Graham and countless others to pull us out of our fallen states of spirituality. But once awakened we would just alter our theology a bit and march right back into our religious ways and the cycle would repeat itself. We'd soon wither and die, requiring yet another emergency rescue by God's spirit.
But when this revival hits, the cycle will end. It will no longer be church as usual. This time the old wine skins will not be able to contain the dynamic power of the spirit about to be unleashed. A whole new kind of wineskin will be needed to handle the throngs of awakened joyous believers who will spring up like poplars. And this time we won't have to submit our wine to those who would rather cork it than dance with us.
That's where the highway comes in. When Isaiah mentioned the "something new" he first reminded us of the supernatural dry road God made through the Red Sea (43: 16,17). But this time it would be different. It would not be a dry road through the sea, but a spirit-soaked pathway through the wilderness.
I believe he was saying this future revival would be our final goodbye, as when He delivered His people from slavery in Egypt. But this deliverance will be from Satan's entire world system, which is rapidly reaching critical mass, before His judgment falls.
Like the Israelites who discovered they were still within Pharaoh's grasp at the Red Sea, we too still live in Satan's Kingdom. Although we're not of this world, we are still in it. And "the whole world lies in the power of the evil one" (1 John 5:19).
But just as God opened a super highway to save His people then, He will do so for us. As Isaiah described it: "And a highway will be there, a roadway, and it will be called 'the highway of holiness'; the unclean will not travel on it, but it will be for him who walks that way. And fools will not wander up on it....And the redeemed of the Lord will return, and come with joyful shouting to Zion, with everlasting joy upon their heads. They will find gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing will flee away" (Isaiah 35:8,10).
So get excited and be expectant, knowing "we are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time" ( 1 Peter 1:5).
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