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Bible Study Series: Exposition Outline on The Gospel of John Chapter 13

2/24/2015

John 13:1-11 "Outline of The Gospel of John Chapter 13'
13 Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that His hour had come that He should depart from this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end.

And upper being ended,* the devil having already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray Him, Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He had come from God and was going to God, rose from supper and laid aside His garments, took a towel and girded Himself. After that, He poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet, and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded. Then He came to Simon Peter. And Peter said to Him, "Lord, are You washing my feet?" Jesus answered and said to him, "What I am doing you do not understand now, but you will know after this." Peter said to Him, "You shall never wash my feet!" Jesus answered him, "If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me." Simon Peter said to Him, "Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head!" Jesus said to him, "He who is bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is completely clean; and you are clean, but not all of you." For He knew who would betray Him; therefore He said, "You are not all clean."

Introduction: Setting the events of Chapter 13 in the right order of actual events in the Upper Room

In Chapters 13 through 17, the Apostle John talks about the “Private Ministry of the Son of God. (Jesus) The next 2 chapters (Chapter 13 and 14) records events and conversations Jesus had with the twelve that occurred in the upper room According to “Biblical Chronology” (the Biblical Order of actual events) on the night they celebrated the Last Passover under the Old Covenant the events in the upper Room happened in the following order:

Matthew 26:20-21: First, they started celebrating what would be the last Passover (under the Old Covenant) Jesus reveals while they are eating that one of the disciples sitting with Him at the table was to betray Him. (Mark 14:17; Luke 22:14-16 & verses 24-30)
He then in John 13 Jesus washes their feet (John 13:1-20)
Matthew 26:21-25 identifies Judas Iscariot as the betrayer. (Mark 14:18-21 & Luke 22:21-23…John 13:21-29)
Matthew 26: 31-35: Judas gets up and leaves the room while everybody else professes they will remain loyal. ( John 13:30-38 Mark 14:27-31…Luke 22:31-38)
Jesus institutes the New Passover (New Covenant) “The Lord’s Supper” (Matthew 2626-29… Mark 14:22-25…Luke 22:17-20)
Jesus gives His final address in the Upper Room before they leave for the Garden of Gethsemane.

"Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that His hour had come that He should depart from this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end.
And supper being ended,* the devil having already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray Him,Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He had come from God and was going to God",
Overview: The Love that Jesus showed from the start to the end of His Ministry on Earth (John 13: 1-3)

Jesus showed consistent proof that He loved His own: calling them to Discipleship: a calling to follow Him.
Jesus took the time to train them. He taught them the truth and dispelled the Pharisee’s rigid misinterpretation of the Law and revealed the “love” aspect of following the Law.
Jesus showed love, compassion and patience whenever the disciple’s weaknesses showed and when they made mistakes as well as rebuke when it was warranted.
Jesus ultimately commissioned them to the calling of ministry as “heralds” to carry out the evangelistic work of spreading the “Good News” of the Gospel.

Jesus Washes His Disciple’s Feet: The Purpose and the “Life” Message (Verses 4-11)

Note: The Apostle John places an emphasis in verse of 2 things: first the devil poisoned Judas Iscariot’s heart to betray Jesus while sitting at the table. And second, Jesus had full understanding of his dignity and elevation of His divine character, (Jesus knew who HE was) yet condescended to wash their feet.

John here focuses on the act of Jesus washing their feet. Jesus, the Son of God, who compelled them to follow Him, now takes the posture of a slave, a servant by stooping down to wash their feet. To the social status conscience person, this look humiliating and degrading of royalty.. . (Note the initial response of Peter) But to us it shows just how far the Lord will go to save a sinner and convert them to righteousness

From supper, (while they were still eating) Jesus gets up from the table, lays aside his (outer) garments (seamless robe and mantle)… takes a towel and wraps it around Himself (in the same manner a slave would)…poured water into a water basin…then began to wash the disciples feet and wipe them with the towel He had wrapped Himself with. (vs. 4-5)

Peter’s Initial response (question asked in respect and humility) :

      You’re going to wash my feet? Are you the Son of God, The Messiah getting ready to became a servant to me and wash my feet?

Jesus answers: What I’m about to do to you, you don’t understand now, but you will know after I’m finished! [(object lesson) I’m about to give you all an object lesson that you won’t forget. (vs. 6-7)

Object lesson they were to learn: (We are to learn them too).
Every day they would see more and more the necessity of humility (being humble) and showing kindness to each other. We will too

They would come to fully understand they were the servants of Christ and of the church, and should not to aspire to seek honors and offices,(power and position) but be willing to perform the “humblest” service for the Lord to the benefit of the world (unsaved). By lifting Jesus up for the world to see, spreading the Gospel and living the life of a servant dedicated to the cause of Jesus Christ. We need to learn this now

They would understand that if God called them to do it, no task is so menial that it is “beneath” them. We need to learn the difference between what we want to do and what the Lord has called us to do!

Peter’s second response: You will never wash my feet.

On the one hand, Peter was expressing his reverence for the Master, however, Peter was totally out of line because Jesus just explained to all of them that they did not know why He was doing this yet. If Peter truly had reverence for Jesus, he simply should have submitted to what Jesus was to do by faith and as Jesus said: after I do this you will fully understand why I did this to all of you.

Jesus’ answers: If I don’t wash your feet, you have no part (relationship) with me. In other words: You can’t be my disciple unless I wash thee. (vs. 8-9)

Peter’s problem: Peter didn’t understand the “spiritual aspect” of what Jesus was doing. Peter was not “fully converted” at this point. He followed Jesus and yes The Holy Spirit did reveal to Peter that Jesus is the “Messiah” that is the Christ, the Son of the Living God, but Peter was blinded by “personal conceptions” of what he thought God expected and how he should respond to the promptings of the Lord.

Object lessons: Even if we don’t understand what the Lord is requiring of us, it is better to be obedient, than disobedient. Obedience is always better than sacrifice. You may not ever know on earth everything you sacrificed when you disobeyed God. (But at judgment you will know) God’s glory is promoted in every act of our obedience. Even if we disobey, God will still be glorified, but we will have to face the punishment of our disobedience.

Peter’s final response:
Lord not just my feet, but my hands, and my head. In other words spiritually: Don’t just cleanse me from where I’ve come and gone, but cleanse me from the evil works I’ve done and the distorted way I was thinking in my mind)

Jesus’ response to Peter’s response: (double meaning- literal according to Jewish custom and spiritually in terms of the condition of the heart of the person)
(vs. 9-10)

Literal meaning: You don’t have to wash your hands or head again, only your feet (because you traveled from the public bath house) Other than your feet you are clean. You are clean, but not all. (of you) are clean. (vs. 11)

Reason: Jesus knew who should (and would) betray Him….Judas Iscariot

Spiritual meaning: As a believer, in Christ you are cleansed before the Law from all sin once and for all. (Hebrews 10:1-2) however, everyday of your life, every child of God must daily confess our (daily) sins that there are no breaches in our relationship with the Father Jehovah (Yahweh) or with Jesus Christ the Son of God, our Lord, Savior and Great High Priest. (1 John 1:1-10)

Jesus Teaches “The” Object Lesson “Being an Humble Servant” (verses 12-20)

After Jesus finished washing their feet and puts aback on his robe and mantle, Jesus sits back down and asks: Do you know what I have done to you? (Do you understand what I just did?) Then Jesus began to explain:

Object Lesson for everyone: It’s our sacred duty to be humble! It is not a suggestion from Jesus….It’s a requirement of ministry and service!

Jesus teaches us all by this example that we should and must always humble ourselves. It starts by dropping our pride, then work wherever we are needed by the Lord and directed by the Pastor, His Under-shepherd in the infrastructure of the church to: as the
Church Covenant Pledge states: “To strive for the advancement of the church in knowledge, holiness and comfort. We are to promote its (the church’s) prosperity and spirituality…To sustain its (the Church’s) ordinances, worship, disciplines and doctrines”. Remember, God didn’t call any of us to re-invent the wheel! None of us ought to be so proud, and vain, that we are unwilling to occupy any position especially if it is one that is of “low esteem”, but we are to regard ourselves as the servants of each other (in the spirit of co-operation), and be willing to befriend each other in every way. You must be of “kindred spirit to do this successfully! That is of the same mind, seeking the same purpose!

Object Lesson for those who are called to organize churches:
Because they (the 12) were to be founders (organizers) of the church (local and regional assemblies), and to be greatly honored by God and those who will appreciate the Gospel ministry and the ministry work of service they would do, Jesus took this occasion to warn them against the dangers of personal ambition, and used this teaching tool as a vivid example of the ONE lesson they ought not ever forget: the duty and living practice of humility.

Remember: The servant isn’t greater than his Lord. (and his lord) Neither is the one who is sent greater than the one who sent him.
This is a universal truth. It speaks to administration protocol Management and craft, Employer and employee…The Pastorate and the Pew… (vs. 16-17)

Jesus and Prophecy concerning “HIS Betrayal”                           (vs. 18-20)

In addressing you all as being clean: I wasn’t talking about all of you. I know whom I have chosen. That is, I know who is not clean (spiritually) among you. I foresaw this moment coming. I even know the one who is going to betray me. That the scripture may be fulfilled: “He that eateth bread with me hath lifted up his heel against me”. (vs. 18)

I’m telling you a head of time so you will know when it happens, you will believe that I am He. (vs. 19) That I AM the Messiah!

Truly , truly I say to you: Whoever accepts the one I send, accepts me and also the one who accepts me accepts the one who sent me. When we are accepted by people who accepts the Gospel Message, they accept me and God, the Father, because they can’t have a relationship with The Father except through ME! (vs. 20)

Jesus Predicts His Betrayal and Exposes the Betrayer                   (vs. 21-30)

Jesus (troubled in His Spirit) testifies and said: I say unto you,” One of you shall betray me”.
The Disciples look at each other not knowing who Jesus was talking about, Simon then prompts John (the beloved disciple) to ask who is it?

Jesus by giving the sop of bread identifies Judas Iscariot as the betrayer.

Satan spiritually enters into Judas and Jesus says: “That you do, do quickly”.

None of the disciples understood why Jesus said this. Judas was the treasurer and was sent by Jesus to buy needed supplies, or to give something to the poor

Jesus Declares: Glorification of both the Son of man and God (the Father)
(vs. 31-35)

Jesus now declares: The Son of man is now glorified and God (the Father) is glorified in Him and…If God (the Father) is glorified in Him, then God will glorify Him in Himself (the Father) and in Him (Jesus) directly. (vs. 31-32)

I won’t be with (among) you too much longer

I give “New Commandment” “Love one another: in the same manner I have loved you (in my actions) This is the way all men will know you are mine.

Jesus Fortells Peter’s Denial of Him                                      (vs. 36-38)

“The cock shall not crow until you have denied me 3 times” .

Dr. William Edward Boddie

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Exposition Concerning "Future" Prophetic Events

2/5/2015

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Matthew 24:3-14

The Signs of the Times and the End of the Age

Cross References:(Mark 13:3-13; Luke 21:17-19; Daniel 9:27)

“ Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, "Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?" And Jesus answered and said to them: "Take heed that no one deceives you. For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am the Christ,' and will deceive many. And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all* these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet”.

“ For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences,* and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of sorrows”.

"Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name's sake. And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. 13 But he who endures to the end shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come”. (NKJV)

The “character” of this “present age” can be described by the following glowing words. Two words that describe the political behavior of the world leaders of this day are “deceptive, and “emotionally troubling”. Regime after regime in the Middle East from Yemen to Jordan continue to fall to coup after coup because their economic statuses are in flux and the people have grown tired of the dictator stranglehold of their perspective political leaders. These countries continue to get poorer and the people fell more oppressed.

          Another character of this age is displayed in the many civil wars fought and ever increasing provocations of more wars on the horizon as well as the rampant spread of false “Messiahs” showing up in America and worldwide. And while I can continue to give you example after example of other characteristic traits that can shed light on the real status of the present age, these events represent only a “microcosm” of the many dreadful and terrible conditions that will become even more prevalent as the world experiences the fulfillment of God’s “poured our wrath” upon a wicked generation as Jesus predicted..

         It is my personal belief that many of the events we that are experiencing in these modern times are beginning to “partial” fulfill “latter day predictions.” With each passing day, it is my belief we will continue to see more cataclysmic events unfold and take place since Jesus’ made these bold prophetic predictions, and shared with us “signs” in response of his rejection by the Jews and the religious leaders of His day. In John 1:11, the Apostle John said [1]“He came to his own and his own received him not”, but as many as did receive Him ,to them became the sons of God, even unto those who called upon His name. Thus, these events, Jesus revealed to the disciples were just the beginning of many calamities that were to follow after his arrest, trial, conviction and crucifixion on the cross at Calvary. He said all these events would ultimately lead us to the end of the age. Jesus said in Matthew 24:8: “These things must and will come to past that the end is here, but the beginning of greater times of sorrows". Jesus said the following additional events would occur. He said “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in diverse places”. Jesus categorized all of these upcoming events as the “beginning of sorrows.”

Taking a Look Back Historically:

         As we take a historic look back at Bible prophecy, since Jesus’ crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension back into Heaven, many of these prophetic events have already occurred. Some of the “future calamities” have a “re-occurring” theme about them because just as they have already repeated themselves numerous times already. Some of the others will continue to occur occasionally throughout this time in history (the present) as modern history progresses forward. Their” repetitiveness” in a lot of cases is based upon the nature of the prophecy and the things or events they will affect. The ones prophecies, pertaining to geological and climatic changes in the weather patterns and ground shifting of the earth are continuous because the weather patterns are always in flux.. These types of conditions always trigger the possibility of continuing periodically, at least until Jesus comes back the second time.

Remember, Jesus said His coming would be after the time of great calamities and fierce persecution of the Jews from those wicked nations who have always sought to wipe the nation of Israel off the face of the earth. When the Jews see Jesus coming back through the clouds to rescue them, His chosen people, the Jews would cry “Blessed is he that comes in the name of the Lord.”

A 2-Fold Bible Prophecy:

       This prophecy (concerning His Second Coming) by Jesus constitutes a “2-fold bible prophecy “. It’s “2-fold” prophecy in the first place because this prophecy has been literally fulfilled once already. In Matthew Chapter 21:7-9, Jesus rode down the main street toward Jerusalem, on what we have come to know as “Palm Sunday”. In expressing euphoric jubilation, the people in Jerusalem lined the roadside as Jesus rode into the Jerusalem on a borrowed donkey. They laid their coats and palm branches along the road in front of him to the jubilant cry of “Hosanna to the Son of David” “Blessed is he that comes in the name of the Lord”.

      The second time this prophecy will literally be fulfilled is after the rapture of the church has occurred and Israel has gone through the7-year Great Tribulation Period. It will be at the end of that tribulation period that Jesus comes back and set up the millennial kingdom where he will reign for 1000 years. According to the Bible, another jubilant group of Jews that survived this terrible period of judgment will make the same “proclamatic” cry to Jesus in realization that Jesus is the “same Messiah” their ancestors rejected when he was on earth in human form at his first coming..

      At the present time, Jesus has not come back as of yet, but many of those things he mentioned in Matthew Chapter 24 are continuing to occur even in this present age.

This Present Age

            This “present age” is what many of us believe is the latter part of the” Dispensation of Grace”, or the “Church Age”. I, am a believer in “Pre-Millennialism and “Pre-Tribulationist” share a common belief with the rest of the pre-millennial believers as well as those who believe in the pre-tribulation rapture that Jesus could come back during our lifetime.

         Leading up to Matthew 24, Jesus, having been rejected after delivering a scathing assessment of the heart and mind of the Hebrews, the Pharisees, Scribes and Sadducees according to Matthew 24: 1-2 has just walked out of the temple in Jerusalem for the last time. In Matthew Chapter 23, Jesus in lamentation and disgust pronounced a series of “woes” upon all the religious leaders, such as the” Pharisees”, “Sadducees”, “Herodians”, “Zealots” and “teachers” of the Law. (Scribes) Having been completely rejected by the Jewish religious leaders and the Jews in general, Jesus declares: “Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. For I say unto you, “You shall not see me henceforth until you shall say “Blessed is he that comes in the name of the Lord”.

          Little did they know that the temple, the chief ornament of Jerusalem the temple that they treasured so much would be destroyed in 70 A.D by Titus, a Roman General., some 38 years later, and the unbelieving Jews will be delivered into the hands of the Roman government. Then, the Emperor would ban them for worshipping there forever (so it seemed) causing the Jewish temple to be forsaken as a place of worship for a long time.

    According to Lightfoot, a biblical scholar, who frequently writes in behalf of Barnes’ Note Biblical Commentary[2], (Lightfoot, 2006) Jesus basically said to the Pharisees and other religious leaders::”The day of your mercy has gone by. I have offered you protection and salvation, and you have rejected it. You are about to crucify me, and your temple to be destroyed. You, as a nation, will be given up to a long and dreadful period of suffering. For your rejection of me, you will not see me again as a merciful Savior; I will not be offering you redemption any more, until you have experienced heavy and dreadful judgments. These judgments must come upon you, and be borne by you, until you would be so glad to hail a deliverer, and say, “Blessed” is he that cometh in the name of the Lord. Blessed be he that comes as the Messiah, to bring us deliverance”.

    Reiterating, this prophecy has not fully been fulfilled as of yet in this present day but the Bible says it will occur when Jesus comes back. Another thing that lets us know that the end has not occurred yet is the fact that neither the “Rapture”, the “7 year tribulation Period”, nor Jesus’ second coming (Revelation) has occurred either. Manyother things have happened since that faithful Palm Sunday, and Jesus’ crucifixion. According to the Dispensational timeline, we are in the “gap” between the 69th and 70th week” of Daniel’s Biblical prophecy. According to Dr. Clarence A. Larkin (Larkin, 1920), this is that interval of time covers the church age and sits in the “valley” between the time of Pentecost according to Acts chapter 2 and the rapture of the church according to 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17

    The Jews as a nation and as God’s chosen are presently in limbo (prophetically) during the church age because of their rejection of Jesus as the Messiah. But the day will come when the Jews, who have since been long cast out and rejected, will hail Jesus as the Messiah, and receive HIM the second time, whom their fathers killed when they had him crucified as the merciful Savior. Dr. Arthur E. Bloomfield (Bloomfield, 1971) stated: “The end in Biblical prophecy means the goal, the time of the fulfillment of the prophecy”. He made the following statement in reference to Matthew 24 where the disciples asked Jesus about his second coming and the end of the age. Bloomfield reminds us that in Bible prophecy: “There is no such thing as the end of the world, in the sense that all thing cease to be”. This earth will go through a renovation on its surface but will not be annihilated as some theologians believe will occur.”

The “Spirit” of Truth versus The “Spirit” of Error

    In Matthew 24:1-8, Jesus gives us the characteristic of the present age. The present age according to Dr. Clarence Larkin (Larkin D. C., 1929) is an age filled with evil. He writes: “The fact that this age is filled with evil is seen in the character of its civilization. After over 1900 years of gospel preaching, the world is spiritually in a worse state, (filled with more spiritual darkness) in proportion to its light, than it was in the days of Christ. It appears to be headed toward some great crisis. The spirit of lawlessness is in the air, and despite all efforts to quench it, it is strangely becoming unmanageable and perverse and seems to be determined to break away from all authority and law”

    Dr. Larkin based the condition of this present age on three “premises”:

    First, (in my opinion) he rightly contends that there are two “opposing” spirits at work in the world in this current dispensation. (Dispensation of Grace) One is the Holy Spirit, who is actively engaged in gathering out from among the masses of people the “elect” body of the church. The other is called the “Spirit of Evil.” These two “opposing” spirits are constantly “locking horns” and engaged in a war that will continue until the end of the Millennial reign of Jesus Christ.

According to the Bible, they are called several things: the “Spirit which is of God” and the “Spirit of the World”; the Spirit of Truth” and the Spirit of” Error;” To the church, the Bible has this to say in regards to the state and status of her: “And you hath He quickened (by the Holy Spirit) who were dead in trespasses and sins; wherein in times past, you walked according to the “course” (age) of this world; according to the Prince and the Power of the air; the Spirit (Satan) (Evil Spirit) that now works in the “Children of Disobedience.”

    Second, Larkin[4] contended that this dispensation was also known as ”Man’s Day”. That is, this present day is the day of the “Glorification of Man.” It’s a literal truth that in the day in which we currently live, the majority of works and achievements done by man are both being glorified, praised and put on public display by man to the attitude of the Virginia Slim’s cigarette slogan: “You’ve come a long way baby”. This open act of “glorifying and praising” the works and accomplishments of man was birthed out of a worldly and “satanic” philosophy known as the “Gospel of progress” It originated from Satan in the Garden of Eden when he rebutted God’s warning to Adam about eating from the tree of the “Knowledge of Good and Evil” by saying to Eve that “the day you eat a from this (forbidden) tree in the midst of the garden (tree of the Knowledge of “Good and Evil) your eyes would be opened and you would be as gods, knowing good and evil.

Adam and Eve fell prey to this pseudo-promise of becoming as “gods” and living life with “opened eyes” based on knowing good and evil and ate the fruit in disobedience and caused the downfall of the whole human race. Sin didn’t just affect the relationship of man with God, The actions of Adam and Eve caused “cataclysmic changes” to the plant and animal kingdom, the bird and aquatic kingdom, as well as to the climatic conditions on earth. Every since man was expulsed from the garden (for his own good so the plan of salvation could remain intact) under the evil influence of Satan, he has sought to become his own god throughout the centuries through worldly philosophy, and godless principles and follow Satan’s diabolical plan and build a “magnificent civilization without the help of God and without God at its helm”.

     When we consider the events of this present age, we have to consider 2 things: First, we must consider this: When Jesus spoke these words to his disciples in Matthew 24, he was addressing the future of the Jewish nation to his disciples, after he had just been rejected by “His own” chosen people The Jews. Second, Jesus took this time to address the future of the world and the nations as well.

     The reason for the second premise is as we well know today, according to Dr, Randall Price (Price, 1998) is “whatever happening in the present time as well as in the future to the Jews as a race and to the Nation of Israel as a whole adversely affects the rest of the world nations too”, especially the following “neighboring border nations: Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Iran, Jordan, Syria, Turkey, Jordan, Lebanon, and Egypt.

     These nations either surround the country geographically, or are in close proximity of Israel, and they have direct political ties or issues with the very existence of Israel as a nation. Some of these nations have been in conflict with Israel far as the Biblical “birth right” of the first born child of Isaac, as well as the land granted to them by God (Canaan) to exist as a nation. Then there are those nations ( China, Russia, the United States) who have either have political ties with Israel, or vested interests or political issues with those bordering Islamic nations, who have political issues with Israel, and other “mid power” nations such as Japan, India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and the United Kingdom whose politics are affected by Israel.. Another thing we must seriously consider is the importance of properly interpreting the daily and climatic occurrences of the modern day in light of what has been predicted by Jesus in Scripture. In Dr. Randall Price’s book “Jerusalem in Prophecy”, he quoted Dr. John F. Walvoord, former Chancellor of Dallas Theological Seminary and touted as one of the foremost prophetic scholars on page 113 of his book concerning end time prophecy. Dr. Walvoord stated:”Never before in history have all the factors been present for the fulfillment of prophecy relating to end-time religious trends and events. Only in our generation have the combined revival of Israel, the formation of a world church, the increasing power of the Muslim religion, the rise of the occult, and the worldwide spread of atheistic philosophy been present as a dramatic setting for the final fulfillment of prophecy. As far as world religion is concerned, the road to Armageddon is already well prepared and those who will travel t their doom may well be members of the present generation”.

Another Dilemma

     Dr. Randall Price brings up another dilemma sort of speak pertaining to the caution we must take in interpreting what constitutes valid events that line up with the “prophetic” word because in his assessment: [5]“Many Christians who has not done an in depth study of Biblical history many times have misapplied events, especially those pertaining to the future of Israel and sent out false alarms to events, labeling them as “markers’ to fulfilled prophecy, only to find out that they did this erroneously upon further review.” Dr Price in his book gave several “litmus test” to follow to assure us of “rightly” discerning the events of today in lieu of prophetic Scripture.

Litmus Test: How to Rightly Discern and Interpret Current Events

We are to interpret current events in light of the Bible, not the Bible in light of current events.

Dr. Price said this is necessary to avoid and discourage what is called “newspaper exegesis”, that is to interpret Bible prophecies based on stories that appear in our media resources. We are also to avoid extra Biblical writings such as Josephus and the Dead Sea Scrolls in interpreting the Bible also. These and current events may help us to understand the historic context of scripture, and how a prophecy may transpire, but we cannot allow current events to cause us to read “certain ideas” into the prophetic text.
In the Bible, the fulfillment of prophetic events related to Israel will not take place until after the age of the church as concluded. This primarily concerns those prophecies pertaining to God’s land grants to Israel and their possession.
Be sure that the Biblical text provides enough information to draw a correct correspondence to current events.
Distinguish between the “last days of the church and the last days of Israel.( Note this: Just because the Bible uses the words “last days’ doesn’t mean that every time this usage is in reference to the same time period). For the church, this term means refers to the present time and will conclude at the rapture. An “example” of this can be found in 1 John 2:18 concerning the ‘last hour”. This passage is in reference to Israel during the Tribulation period when they will meet antichrist, whereas it is equally as true that Jesus warned us that there are many antichrist in the world already, that being a reference to the fact that we ate in the age where the events that we are experiencing is preparing the way for the “Man of Sin”.
Be sure that the prophetic interpretation of any current event does not imply “date setting. We have already in the last 13 years since the beginning of the year 2000 experience at least 2 prophecies that turned out to be false: the Y2K dilemma and the Mayan prophecy concerning the year 2012.” (Mine).

Price wrote: “Since the last day prophecies of the Old Testament concern Israel and not the church, signs that point to the nearness of their conclusion cannot be used to calculate the events expected at the end of the church age”.,

     Now in heeding Dr. Price’s suggestive method of interpretation, let us examine the text. In verses 4 through 8, of Matthew 24, Jesus gives eight signs or warnings of events that will shape the landscape of the latter days, the days in which I believe we are living in today. Examining the current events in this “present day”, several things I believe have either taken place and continue to (as some events will occur more than once.

     “Deception” and deceptive practices have been ongoing since the time of Jesus and in these current times dominate the news as deception is seen, from the corporations worldwide, religious and even the private sectors. The “children of disobedience” as Paul called them in Ephesians 2:2 are becoming more obstinate in their open rebellion towards Christianity and the Christian Church these days. In this present day, they are working (in futility) to make this earth a more comfortable habitation for man and forming a federation of religious bodies. With this religious body called the World Council of Churches comprised of not just churches, but Muslim mosques leaders and other religious factions as well, it is their ultimate desire not to have The Son of God (Jesus) to reign over them; it is their preference to have a godless or a hodgepodge religious society. They are unaware of the fact that this action on their part will help pave the way for Satan’s “Man of Sin”, the Antichrist to step forward and after the rapture takes place assume leadership in a chaotic situation.

       Satan is very active in this present age. Revelation 12:9 lets us know that He (Satan) is the deceiver of this world. Satan has raised false hopes and causes man to pursue riches rather than the God of Righteousness, (Matthew 13:22) by glorifying sin, and promoting a life filled with unrighteousness (2 Thessalonians 2:9-11). Through Satan, this modern era has been deluged with strong delusions, seduction and seducing spirits causing many an illegal investment schemes known as “Ponzi” schemes to ruin the finances of many unsuspecting people. Several come to mind. (Source: Wikipedia.org, “Enron Scandal). Recently Bernard Madoff, former non-executive chairman of the NASDAQ stock exchange was involved in a major Ponzi scheme along with Allen Stanford, who received a 110 year prison sentence for his part in a 7-billion dollar Ponzi scheme he ran in Houston, Texas. Another illegal investment scheme that had a devastating effect on many retired workers of Enron was the Enron scandal of October 2001 where the deceased former CEO of Enron bilked many of retired workers of their retirement funds through fraudulent investments which eventually led to the demise of the Enron Corporation and the attorneys handling the defendant retirees winning their class action lawsuit but the attorneys getting the bulk of the disputed money in legal and attorney’s fees. Between the 1980’s to this present day, there has been at least 50 major investment schemes (Ponzi schemes) that promised prospective investors huge windfalls of money only to leave them penniless and the masterminds of these scheme filthy rich until they were eventually caught and convicted by the authorities.

         On another economic front, we have seen recently increased political and economic activity from the 10 Euro-nation Federation (latter day Roman Empire) that’s currently comprised of 13 “federated” nations. (Daniel Chapters 7:7-8, 19-20-, 23-25). They came together because of the serious economic instability in Europe for at least the last 35 years. At this present time, another monetary crisis that has several countries (Italy, Greece and Spain) on the verge of total economic collapse. The Union is working feverishly to help those member nations recover and regain a favorable financial status. The “Eurodollar”, the currency widely used in the European market is rapidly losing its monetary value, almost in proportion to the decline of the American dollar and the overall economies of all nations involved in the confederation are in serious trouble. The federation at this present time in Biblical history is attempting to “prop” up their member banks financing and doing other business with these troubled member nations in hopes to help them get back on the roads to economic recovery. But as this part of Biblical prophecy plays out to fruition, these nations

(10 toes according to Daniel 2:40-44) make up the resurgence of the new Roman Empire of the New World Order that has been steadily emerging, especially in Europe and spreading it’s political influence worldwide.

     Many “False Christs” have appeared in the 21st century through many false leaders influenced by Satan who claim to be the “messiah” the people have been waiting for. Even in the church, there has been rampant deception by Satan to steer the church toward a “state religion” and the propagation of the “Brotherhood of Man” using the banner slogan:” A New Thought…A New Mind.” In our life time, I have personally met members of an occult sect called the “Unification Church” or “Moonies” on the streets selling roses in support of this cultic church who were led by the Rev. Sun Yung Moon, a self- proclaimed messiah and business mogul of the Unification Church.(Source Huffington Post.com) who made the claim God sent him to finish what Jesus started. While in St. Croix, Virgin Islands back in the 1980’s, I met a young lady from Guiana who survived the massacre of a huge cult church following of the Rev. Jim Jones who threw down the bible in one of their services and openly claimed “You don’t need this book anymore! You got me and I’m the only “messiah”. When the authorities came to arrest Rev. Jim Jones, he instructed his cult following to take a poison as a sign of martyrdom rather than to live under the tyranny of what he deemed oppression from the outside. When many refused to do so, he ordered armed bodyguards to shoot in the congregation and kill everyone. There’s also another cult leader, came along in the mid 1990’s name Yahweh Ben Yahweh (a.k.a. Hulon Mitchell), (Source: Yahweh benyahweh .com) who formed and became the leader of the “Yahweh” movement. Who can forget the Branch Davidian cult, that was led by David Koresh (Source: Denver Post.com) and many others who have since come and gone.

     Throughout this present day, there have been quite a few wars and even more rumors of wars. In recent years, the United States has been engaged in 2 Gulf Wars during the presidencies of both George H and George H.W. Bush. Even, under the current president Barack Obama, there was the Libyan conflict in which through covert operations, then Libya’s President and dictator Miramar Kaddafi was targeted and eventually killed by US navy seals. (Source: www.telegraph.co.uk) This covert operation had been in the planning stages for years, ever since it was proved that Kaddafi gave the order to shoot down an American passenger plane flying near Libyan airspace well over 20 years ago. (Sources Wikipedia.org.)
There is currently the war going on in Afghanistan with the Pakistan regime, the restructuring of the government in Iraq, 2 occasions where there has been the government meltdown of Egypt and the dethroning of President Hosni Mubarak, and recently as Wednesday July 3rd, the dethroning of Muhammad Moresi who won election just one year ago and attempted to reinstitute Sharreah Law and the strictest form of Islam to the angry response of the Egyptians, many who were supporters of Moresi. (source BBC.com,/Uk/news) the current potential genocide war ongoing in the Syrian conflict between rebel factions and Syrian army and the loyalist to embattled President Hassad, (Source Wikipedia.com/wiki/basher) the ouster of the Prime Minister of Yemen (Source : www .telegraph. co.uk/ news) and other Arab nations government imploding within the last 3 years. In the midst of these wars and rumors, nations have risen against nations. For an example recently North Korea, who have been in an ongoing “cold war” threatened the sovereign nation of South Korea once again, as recently as in February of this year (2013) when tensions flared up at the border of the two countries. . Weeks ago Kim Jung Yung President of North Korea placed his Army and Navy on “red alert”.(Source: Reuters) Since then and at present, the United Nations have since sent peace negotiators to force a summit conference in hopes to broker a peace treaty between these long going rival nations. In other places in the Near East there are rival political factions that have been responsible for the escalation of the conflicts and fighting in the Islamic world. These three primary groups: Hamas, Hezbollah, and al-Qaeda, all having issues with the United States and Israel respectively have taken full advantage of all the political unrest in the Middle East going on in Syria and Afghanistan as each push their personal agendas in their quest to reshape the political playing field not just in the Middle East, but worldwide as they carry out vicious terrorist attacks on each other and in other parts of the world including the United States.

     Even though we have seen our share of wars and military conflicts across the Arab world, the United States have been involved in many of them directly and covertly, and there is so much talk of a new world order, what Jesus said is still true, the end has not come yet and we can expect wars on a grander scale than what happened to us on 911, or what is currently going on in Syria, Afghanistan and Pakistan. [6]Dr Warren Wiersbe wrote an exposition (Wiersbe, 1980) of the Gospel of Matthew writes: “Wars are not a sign of the end. There have always been wars in the world and there will always be until the very end. War of themselves do not announce the end of an age or the coming of the Lord.”

Some of the great tragedies that are “offshoots” of any war are increased famines, and pestilences. Dr. Wiersbe in talking about famines in the same book also wrote: “War and famines go together”. Referencing Revelation 6:6, he goes on to explain how widespread famine and pestilences caused the economic infrastructure of many nations and countries to collapse causing the price of staple foods to soar to the extent that workers wages are sharply affected, to the point that “it will take a day’s wage just to pay the higher food prices” leveled on staple foods. The United States also at present is currently in a serious economic crisis. Case and point:
     At present, we are in according to the congress’ assessment in “trillions” of dollars in debt and most of the debt we owe to foreign nations is being covered for us by China. It got so bad at one point that the major banks refused to help the private sector to recover, even after Congress bailed out Bank of America and other banks.. As we slowly recover from the current economic fiasco, we can’t sweep the truth under the rug that we came extremely close to suffering a total economic collapse. The truth is we are still not completely out of the woods economically. Other countries; Greece, and Spain, are still teetering economically as the euro-dollar has sharply dropped in value. This present day has seen its share of “pestilences”. Pestilences such as “Agent Orange” a chemical loaded inside bombs used in Vietnam poisoned many of our soldiers as well as the Viet Cong that fought in the Vietnam conflict. I’ve had several personal friends pass away over the last 15 years after succumbing to its effects and recently several co-workers on my current job were forced to retire early from its crippling affects. . The death toll of many of our soldiers returning home from the Vietnam conflict has gone up from its use. As the increase of chemical weapons are now being used in many of the Middle East conflicts, the death toll sharply goes up in those war conflicts.. Another contributor to pestilences today is homicides when dead bodies lay out in the open or are dumped in the commitment of a heinous crime and decayed days, or weeks before someone finally located them and sanitize the crime scene. Not just in war, but we have had to deal with other pestilence outbreaks in the present day such as “mad cow” disease, cholera, .Asian flu and Echoli disease .and mosquitoes carrying Malaria or deer ticks carrying Lyme disease.
     The last thing that we can see occurring in the present day is devastating earthquakes. According to “Earthquakes Today” (Source: emsc-csem.org/Earthquakes) E.M.S.C. which is the acronym for the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre) reports that earthquakes “these days” are virtually an everyday occurrence. Within the last month worldwide, there have been at least 30 earthquakes reported that registered above 4.0 on the Ritcher Scale. Last month alone on June 16, 2013, 3 earthquakes occurred. One occurred in Crete, Greece of the magnitude of 5.8 on the Ritcher scale, one in Pueblo, Mexico that registered 6.1 and one in the Marquarie Island region that registered about 5.7. In recent years, we have had earthquakes to occur in the middle of the ocean that cause huge tidal waves that have had devastating effects on islands and the mainland countries who are bordered by oceans and seas. The most recent one occurred in 2011 in the Pacific Ocean when a huge tidal wave triggered by an earthquake cause death and massive destruction in Sendai, Japan. According to many seismologist, earthquakes are rapidly increasing and are becoming more devastating and causing more massive deaths as these tremors increase in strength and register higher than 5.0 on the Ritcher Scale
     Jesus said we would see these things occur in the latter days as we prepare for his second return on earth to set up the millennial kingdom here on earth. The church is preparing for the rapture according to 1 Thessalonians 4:13-16, yet within the church you can see a great falling away from the true faith, but you also see a great revival as Jesus continues from heaven to intercede for the church as our Great High Priest. All of these things are occurring even in this present day but as Jesus said, the end is not yet.

                                  Bibiography

Bloomfield, D. A. (1971). Armageddon "The Last Battle". Minneapolis, Minnesota: Bethany Fellowship Inc.

Larkin, D. C. (1920). Dispensational Truth. Glenside, Pennsylvania: Rev. Clarence Larkin Estate Inc.

Larkin, D. C. (1929). The Book of Daniel. Glenside, Pennsylvania: Rev. Clarence A. Larkin Estate Inc.

Lightfoot, D. A. (2006). Barnes Note Commentary. Seattle,Washington: Biblesoft Electronic Media Inc.

Price, D. R. (1998). Jerusalem In Prophecy. Eugene, Oregon: Harvest House Publishers.

Wiersbe, D. W. (1980). Matthew "Be Loyal". Wheaton, Illinois: Victor Books.

Dr. William Edward Boddie

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Exposition on Life Matters: "Seeing Your Life's Circumstances From God's Point of View"

2/3/2015

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2 Kings 6:8-18" Seeing Your Life's Circumstance From God's Point of View"

Now the king of Syria was making war against Israel; and he consulted with his servants, saying, "My camp will be in such and such a place." And the man of God sent to the king of Israel, saying, "Beware that you do not pass this place, for the Syrians are coming down there." Then the king of Israel sent someone to the place of which the man of God had told him. Thus he warned him, and he was watchful there, not just once or twice. Therefore the heart of the king of Syria was greatly troubled by this thing; and he called his servants and said to them, "Will you not show me which of us is for the king of Israel?"

And one of his servants said, "None, my lord, O king; but Elisha, the prophet who is in Israel, tells the king of Israel the words that you speak in your bedroom." So he said, "Go and see where he is, that I may send and get him." And it was told him, saying, "Surely he is in Dothan."

"Therefore he sent horses and chariots and a great army there, and they came by night and surrounded the city. And when the servant of the man of God arose early and went out, there was an army, surrounding the city with horses and chariots. And his servant said to him, "Alas, my master! What shall we do?"

"So he answered, "Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them." And Elisha prayed, and said, "Lord , I pray, open his eyes that he may see." Then the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. So when the Syrians came down to him, Elisha prayed to the Lord , and said, "Strike this people, I pray, with blindness." And He struck them with blindness according to the word of Elisha". (NKJV)

“ Seeing Your Life’s Situations From God’s Point of View”

In this life, there are 2 ways we can see your life’s situations. We can see our situations from the “human perspective”…The human perspective is when we look at our situations from our point of view. Or … we can see our life’s situations from God’s perspective…which requires us to look at our life situations from HIS point of view. Now…I don’t know from which perspective you currently looking at them from…but I can tell you…from personal experience...as you take a introspective look at your current life situations, ... that it’s better to see them the same way God sees them rather than looking at them from your point of view. The reason I can say this is I personally found out that we are either "reactive" or "pro-active" in our responses to our situations based on how we view our lives trials, tribulations and challenges in general. Another important reason we should see all our life’s situations from God’s point of view… because of the "sovereign wisdom" that our "omniscient" God possess! What about the "Wisdom of God":
The Wisdom of God
God is so wise…He can take the foolishness of preaching and confound the “wises” of men…I'm talking about "Jehovah"… God’s “Greek name”… "Yahweh"... God's Hebrew name ...the "True and Living God" that can make so much sense… out of what seems to be "utter nonsense"…. Our "Elohim" (Creator) God can…cause a brown cow to eat green grass yet give white milk…Our "Messianic" God that can take someone who’s lost in sin… and Jesus, Our "Savior" God will take them in…and cause a light from Heaven… to fill their very soul…And then, fill their heart with love…..and write their name above…that they will discover that just a little talk with Jesus… will make everything alright….. In other words…God can go into HIS "laboratory of redemption" and take out all that evil that "blackened" our lost souls and dip our souls in His shed red redemption blood and we come out washed white as snow….He’s Alpha and Omega God…."He is" and knows the beginning …and "He is" and knows the end… Let me show you what I mean….
Concerning King Benhadad: Angry and Disgusted

Reading from the Biblical text, starting in verse 6, we are introduced to Benhadad, the king of Syria …He is angry… very angry because once again, Israel just foiled his plan to ambush and to conquer them… The king had made top secret plans …. classified….not known by anybody that wasn't in the strategy meeting…(so he thought) A strategy meeting that took place in the king’s bed chamber but when the Syrian army got to the Israeli border…… once again, Israel was already there…waiting on them …locked and loaded …with an ambush of their own…and the Bible said Israel ran Benhadad and the Syrian army back across the border…

Benhadad's Covert Strategy:
Imagine how the meeting went in the “bed chamber” of your imagination: The king points to a specific place on a topographic map… laying out the terrain in Israel…: The king said: “In such and such place…. I’ll place my command post… “That place”…. is the best place to set up our ambush …If we attack them right there…we’ll catch them by surprise …. They’ll be at our mercy…and there will be nothing they can do… to stop us” from conquering them… Well…

What the king didn’t know was "Jehovah- Shammah" (which means the Lord is present)… was present right there in that “bedchamber” meeting…God heard everything that was said ….and saw what they were planning. Benhadad didn’t know… that Israel's God is “omniscient”…He knows everything about everybody…that Israel’s God is “omnipotent”…because He’s got all power… so much power…that He has “healing power” in the hem of his garment…He’s got “delivering power” just by speaking the WORD….He’s got both “saving and cleansing” power because Christ shed His precious blood in heaven before He did it on the cross at Calvary outside Jerusalem! He didn’t know that Israel's God is “omnipresent”…that ‘s everywhere at the same time….and “immutable” because He’s the same yesterday… today … and all eternity…He never changes….yes, the Lord was there and heard everything they said in that bedchamber…

Man and "Covert" Strategy: Failed Ambush

This lets all of us know… that in reality… we have no secrets that we can keep from God….As a matter of fact…God already knows what you’re going to do before you do it. He already knows what you are thinking before you gather that thought in your mind… God knows what you’re going to say even before you fix your lips to say it…Syria’s king didn’t know it… that God was in the midst…and their ambush plan were already blown up… even before they got them set up…That’s the kind of God we serve…. God is constantly blowing up satanic ambushes… even before the devil can get his evil scheme… fully set up against you… Isaiah said in Isaiah 54:17: “no weapon” that formed against us shall prosper …and every tongue that rises up against us, the Bible says God shall condemn… Remember: You don't have to worry about "persecutions" they will form….oppressions...they will form….accusations will form…the demons will form… the lightning will flash….the thunder will roar….the sin-breakers will dash….and try to conquer our soul….but if we just remember… what Jesus said….Jesus said: still fight on….He promised never to leave us….never to leave us alone….NO WEAPON….formed against us shall prosper He protects us from dangers seen and unseen...

Concerning Elisha: "God Sent"Prophet

Well…in verse 9, God sent the Prophet Elisha to talk to the King of Israel to warn him not to take his army into a waiting ambush… Can’t you hear Elisha say: King… God told me to tell you King Benhadad’s setting up an ambush….. to trap you in such and such place!... Whatever you do… take heed…and beware….that you don’t go and pass through that place ….and get caught in Syria’s trap. …Now if it wasn’t bad enough that the enemy wasn’t trying to trap God’s chosen people back then….

Now…Satan is trying to ambush and conquer the modern church…God knows his every move down to every demon and every domestic (that’s people) he’s going o use…. To set up the church…That’s why God uses his pastors, ministers and teachers and seasoned witnesses to warn us about the coming ambushes from the demonic world…

The Bible says: be sober …be vigilant … because your adversary the Devil is going up and down…to and fro…in the earth…seeking whom he may devour… .Right at this very moment...the Devil is mapping out a wicked… evil war strategy against each and every one of us…. He trying to steal from us….to kill our hopes and dreams… and to destroy us….trying to mess us up with the will of God…He lies in wait… He sets up demonized ambush after ambush…with lying and conniving deceptions…aimed at the “such and such places” in our lives….

You know what? We got a lot of “such and such” places!..in our lives…. our finances…a Such and such place …our marriages… and relationships….a such and such place…. your children…and family….such and such places…don’t forget your job… our “elected” government…Such and such place could be your physical and mental health…the physical church … the choir….the ministry itself…Satan leads a relentless attack..corrupting deacon board…corrupting pastors and preachers…choir members and pwe sitters…... Whatever you do…Don’t let the Devil ambush you in your such and such places!

Israel's Response:
Elisha gave the king God’s message …The king of Israel responded the right way. He took heed to the advice of the man of God and stayed out of harms way and by doing so, God saved him at that border not just once not twice…but 3 times! Preacher how did he do that? Well…. The king of Israel took his army and went to the same spot where Benhadad was to set up his ambush and got there before Syria did. Israel then set up a “counter attack” of their own and waited on Syria to dash across the Israeli border. As soon as Syria crossed the border and came in Israel, Israel ‘s army rose up and beat them back across the Syrian border 3 different times! What a mighty God we serve!!

Can’t you see the look on Benhadad’s face when he came face to face with Israel’s army: He was shocked, amazed, confused and mad! So much so that when they got back into Syria, an angry Benhadad makes a “scathing accusation” against his own army: There’s “treachery” in the ranks! Somebody in here has breached our national security! One of you leaked our war strategies to the enemy! As a matter of fact: I got a question! Which one of you is on Israel’s side?

One of his trusted soldiers said: Nobody your majesty…The problem is not with our army,…the problem is with a Prophet.,,,the problem is Elisha,…that prophet in Israel…..

Let me tell you something…in this evil….jacked up.. and wicked generation …calling the gospel preacher or Christian Church “the problem” is the “highest compliment” any preacher or church can ever get!!!…when they preach and teach the WORD of God in Spirit and in Truth…and whenever you do that sooner or later somebody in their anger against the truth will call you THAT!!.

If it wasn’t for “THAT PREACHER” THAT PASTOR….. ”THAT DEACON”….”THAT CHIOR MEMBER” ….And don’t make them that mad too many times….the next thing you know…… they’ll start calling you “THAT SO AND SO”…Well…..THAT is not your name…If anybody asks you who I am….tell them that I am a child of God …NOT A THAT!!1

Here’s another point……the Syrian soldier gave ELISHA credit for something GOD DID!!!Got a “hot” news flash from God for you…. WHATEVER good came through you…you didn’t do it by yourself…GOD did it through you….Paul said…it’s no longer I …but…Christ that lives in me…..Don’t YOU ever take credit for anything GOD DID THROUGH YOU…As a matter of fact…Everything that happened to you ….or through you that was good…God did it…YES HE DID!!! GOD PICKED YOU UP…..TURNED YOU AROUND….PLACED YOUR FEET ON SOLID GROUND…GOD did IT….

God used the prophet…. to “stand in the gap”…to intercede and run interference..and that’s all we are…”gap standers”….. “intercessory preaching and prayer warriors….God’s latter day witnesses.. cut in the mold of John the Baptist …telling a sin-sick dying world…Repent ye for the kingdom of Heaven is at hand…We are Gap standers …not ICONS……All we did… was answer the call from the Lord… and now we do just like he Jeremiah did:: …STAND YE IN THE GATEWAY and proclaim the WORD OF THE LORD!!!……

What’s the advantage of being of a Gap Stander

First of all…Gap standers have the favor of God….Every intercessor in the bible that stood in the gap for someone else had a powerful anointing and presence of the Holy Ghost resting mightily upon them…Not only that…

God is a fierce protector of HIS “gap standers…. It’s not that “gap standers” don’t go through testing….persecutions or trials…but… a gap stander is battle tested and battle ready….Their theme song is I’m on the battlefield for my Lord….and I promised HIM that I would serve HIM until I die…Gap standers go through…just like everybody else…Sometimes they go through more because they had the will to do and he soul to dare….

Gap standers know that weeping may endure for a night…but JOY … COMES IN THE MORNING!!!

They know God will give you insight …beyond your eyesight. …God will put substance….in your stance… joy for all of your sorrows….hope for all of your tomorrows….

God will let you see what your enemies are attempting to do…. And tell you what the enemy said about you…. Sometimes…God will warn you ahead of time …whenever the enemy is lurking around you… and poising himself to launch a sneak attack against you…. God is not limited… or blocked from any secret rendezvous or backroom meetings….He’s God!!!! And besides HIM…..there is NO OTHER…Ain’t no mountain high enough…ain’t no valley low enough … ain’t no river wide enough…no underground cave deep enough or dark enough…. to keep HIM from you!!

Second: as a gap stander…God wants you to know that your enemies are HIS enemies. Whenever an enemy, demonic or domestic fight against you, attacks you, tries to block you …slanders your name.. injures you… lies on you …or say all manner of evil against you. …remember what Jesus said…Jesus said: whatever you do… to the least of these my brethren… you also do it unto me.

Third…as a gap stander…We serve a loving God … God, in HIS grace is showing mercy and loving restraint not just toward us, but toward our enemy too ….He lets it rain on the just as well as the unjust…….BUT…. let me warn all our enemies: BOTH demonic and domestic…GRACEFOR YOU is not forever… God is longsuffering…but God is just… and he has a “cut-off” date for evil too …. Sometimes during the grace period…people get worse and worse…since iniquity seems to abound…. Paul said GRACE did much more abound … Don’t worry about the witchcraft and root workers…I stop by to tell you… their cut-off date is right around the corner…..

We all deal with the Devil…. constantly talking in \our eargate …. saying all kinds of grotest and vile things about us and God…constantly coming against our identity in Christ….attacking us in our spirit… and tries to mangle and dump a lot of smut in our mind….always trying…to overload our thinking with a whole lot of mess….

Satan hates the Spirit of God in us and His holy mantle resting on us…… So he unloads his arsenal of gross and vile talk like a an AK-47… blatantly trying to mess our mind up so bad that if you don’t ask God to quicken your spirit and thicken your skin,…some of you just might knuckle under the pressure …become suicidal and think that your life ain’t worth the living… and believe that you are better off dead than alive…. That’s a lie from the pit of hell…:

I HEARD Peter say: Beloved, think it not strange when fiery trials come to try you as if some strange thing has happened to you…No matter what grotest or blasphemous things demons and demonized domestic people say about you …and about God… … it doesn’t change who God is… nor…does it doesn’t change God’s love for you either…because In the end…. God is still God… and you are still you too…blessed…and highly favored…Too blessed to be stressed….You want to know something else…nothing the devil say… changes what God is going to do …for you….What God has for you….it is for you…

This and I’ll head toward the highway…

God told me just the other day: William Boddie….whenever I send out my word and wherever I send it…nobody domestic and nobody demonic…can stop my word…from doing whatever I set my Word to do….if they refuse to humble themselves, pray, seek my face…and turn from their wicked ways….the time will come when I will pour out my wrath upon the face of this earth and they will reap just what they sow….I come by to tell you…if your skin has gotten a little thin…because of all the fierce persecution that came your way …God know about all of our enemies….God will make all of your enemies your footstool…God will, if you let him……He’ll cut off your enemies…prepare a table before you… in the presence of our enemies and sometimes, if your enemies let him…God will convert and save your enemies…

Well now….when the king of Syria, found out that Elisha told the king of Israel of his plans,….Benhadad told his army… Go find that prophet ….tell me where he is …so I can fetch him and deal with him…The spies left the king and found out that Elisha was living ….and sent word that Elisha was living in Dothan, …about 14 miles north of Samaria. . .When the soldiers told Benhadad where he was …..He sent horses and chariots….50,000 men after the man of God… in the course of the night to bring Elisha back dead or alive…..The Syrian army came that night… and surrounded the city of Dothan, where Elisha lived… Elisha had a young servant …who was an early riser… because he had problems sleeping at night….The bible said…that night…he happened… to be wide awake… when the army came…The bible said… the servant went outside… and when he got outside ….he look around… and he saw…that the whole city …was completely surrounded …by Syria’s horses and chariots…when he saw this…..he got afraid ….and he ran straight to Elisha …

I heard him say…. Elisha….my Master… the whole city is surrounded … .there are horses and chariots everywhere…what are we going to do?..... The young servant of Elisha saw their situation from a “human” point of view”… …but Elisha saw their circumstance from God’s point of view…. I heard Elisha say…Don’t be afraid ….for they that are with us are more than they that be with them….And at that moment…. Elisha looked up toward heaven and then he started praying: Lord…I pray to you… that you open his eyes that he may see….that they that are with us are more than they that are with them…the bible said …. God peeled back the curtains of heaven…. and opened the young man’s eyes…. and when he looked up at the mountain top… the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire…right behind the Syrian army… ain’t God alright…The enemy had Elisha and his servant surrounded but God had the Syrian army completely surrounded.

And that what I want to tell you….When you see your life from God’s perspective you will see that if God be for you…who can really be against you…Whenever the enemy tells you that he’s got you surrounded and there’s no way out ….Tell your enemy he may have you surrounded… but The Lord has him surrounded…Sometimes….we are hard-pressed on every side.... but from God’s perspective we are haven’t been crushed… Sometimes…trouble comes and we are perplexed, but from God’s perspective …we have the assurance that….we are not in despair… persecuted comes all the time,….God said…but not forsaken….Sometimes….we’re struck down…..God said…, but not destroyed that’s because we are always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus… that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body….Jesus died that we might live…They crucified him on the cross…..Blood came streaming down…….

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Bible Study Series: Exposition Outline on The Gospel of John Chapter 13

Exposition Concerning "Future" Prophetic Events

Exposition on Life Matters: "Seeing Your Life's Circumstances From God's Point of View"

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