God's Word In Exposition
  • Home
  • About Rev. William Boddie
  • The Word In Exposition Blog
  • Articles/Newsletters
  • Contact/Feed-back Form
  • Topic/ Discussion Board
  • Store
  • Untitled

Bible Study Series: "Exposition On The Gospel Of John Chapter 14"

3/12/2015

0 Comments

 
Picture
John 14:1-6: Jesus: The Way, Truth.......The Life

"Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me.  In My Father's house are many mansions;* if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.*  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.  And where I go you know, and the way you know." Thomas said to Him, "Lord, we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way?" Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

Bible Study Exposition of The Gospel of John Chapter 14

Introduction:

 Just like the events in Chapter 13, the events of Chapter 14 also took place in the upper room. Chapter 14 concludes everything that took place in the guest chamber. Having told them of a pending betrayal (Judas Iscariot) and a pending denial (Peter), and that He was getting ready to leave them (crucifixion) the remaining 11 disciples at this point all had troubled looks, they were perplexed with looks of sadness and despair.  

Jesus Comforts the Eleven and Promises His Return (Verses 1-6)

Right before they leave the upper room and head toward Gethsemane, Jesus takes the time to give them this word of comfort: “Let not your heart be troubled” :

You believe in God…..Believe also in me…Here are a few reasons:

Jesus said "I AM the way, the Truth, and the Life…No man can come to the Father but by ME".  

We can only obtain favor from Jehovah (Yahweh) God the Father through the Son Jesus Christ. We have access to both the Father’s and the Son’s throne through prayer. This is why we pray through Jesus Christ to the Father. Jesus intercedes for us and through His intercession as our Advocate, we have direct access to God the Father. The only way anyone can be saved and enter his kingdom, is by obtaining salvation and entrance to the kingdom through the Lord Jesus Christ.

What is meant by “coming by Jesus”?
It means approaching the throne of God in his name and depending on His merits to navigate us through the maze of life. The reason this is because we are ignorant about many things pertaining to God. To the “Carnal” man, the kingdom and the other things pertaining to God are foolishness to them.  Jesus alone is the only one that can guide us from earth to glory in heaven and throughout the rest of life eternal. We must accept the fact that by nature and the SIN of Adam, we are sinful, and it is only by the redemption and intercession work of Jesus that we can be pardoned and saved. Because of sin, we are blind, seeing as the Apostle Paul said "through a glass darkly." and he only can enlighten us. God has appointed Jesus as Our Mediator, and ordained that all blessings shall descend to this world through him. Therefore, God has put the world under Jesus’ control; and has given the affairs of men into his hand, and has appointed him to dispense whatever may be necessary for our peace, pardon, and salvation,

You have a mansion prepared for you…I’m going to prepare a place for you.
I’m coming back for you so you can be with me eternally.

 Power point:

 In order for Jesus to accomplish this for them (us)....Jesus would first relinquish operating in His office as Prophet. As our Messiah and Prophet, He was to be arrested and crucified, buried, in 3 days, be raise from the dead; taking the saints of old from paradise section of the underworld and moved them from paradise to heaven; ascended to His throne in heaven;    Then…Occupy His office as Great High Priest and Our Advocate, then at God’s appointed time relinquish operating in the office of Our Great High Priest, put on His Kingly robe and come back to take us to our heavenly home.  What’s the point for us? Our consolation is based on what we believe about God and Jesus.

This means we must believe in them both. Jesus was saying: “Put your confidence in US”.  If you believe in God, You must believe in Jesus Christ as the Son of God and equal in “state” and statue” in every way to Jehovah God the Father.

Jesus then reiterates his pending death in the following words:
“Where I go…you know and the way (method) you know”.  (crucifixion) vs.4.

Note: In Thomas’ following question, Thomas reveals that the disciples still didn’t understand that Jesus was about to die, even though He told them 4 times already:“Lord we don’t know where you are going! How can we know the way”?

 Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through "If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and from now on you know Him and have seen Him."  Philip said to Him, "Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficient for us." Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, 'Show us the Father'?  Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works.  Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me, or else believe Me for the sake of the works themselves. (NKJV)
The Oneness of God the Father (Jehovah or Yahweh) and Jesus (verses 7-12)

Jesus responds to Thomas’ question: The Answer starts in (verse 6: I)

"I AM the way, the truth and the Life"….Jesus is the way ( the only way) to “God” and “heaven!”

“If you had known me, you should have known my father also…and from now own…you know HIM and seen HIM.  (vs. 7) In Other words:  

If you had let go of your Jewish prejudices about the Messiah, You would have known the counsels and designs of my Father as they pertained to my death and resurrection. If you had understood that it was proper for me to die, you would also have understood the purposes and plans of God in my death; and, knowing that, you would have seen that it was wise and best. But from now on (after my death, burial and resurrection) you will understand the plans and counsel of God.

Important Historical Point To Remember:

At this point, they still did not have accurate knowledge of or a full understanding of his character and purpose. They still were locked in to a large extent, the many “Jewish” notions of what the “Messiah” would look like and how he was going to deliver Israel. They did not fully understand that he was to die and be raised from the dead. They didn’t understand that Jesus came to save all men. They were looking for a fierce warrior to get the yoke of the Roman government off them.

Phillip said: “Show us the Father and it will be sufficient for us.”
Jesus responded: " Have I been so long time with you and yet, you don’t know me Phillip?"Do you believe that I AM in the Father and the Father is in me?

They sat under 3 years of teaching, say at least 36 documented miracles, the casting out demons. All the work done through me was to prove to you, Israel and the rest of the world that I came from God, rather I am He.  Jesus then said to Phillip:

"The words that I speak to you are not about me but about the Father who lives in me. He’s doing the work. Believe that I AM in the Father and the Father is in Me, or else believe Me for the works that have been done sake".

  In other words,  If you can’t grasp the fact that I am God manifested in the flesh…Let the work that I have done speak for me for they testify to who I really AM!         

"Verily, verily I say unto you: “he that believes on me: the works that I do…he shall do also….AND…greater works than these shall he do; because I go to my Father".

When we believe in Jesus and all the things he did while he was on earth, Jesus guaranteed   that we will be empowered to do the same works he did and greater works through the gifts of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:4-11) and the "fruit" of the Spirit. (Galatians 5:22)

“The Answered Prayer”    Prayer of Reassurance           (verses 13-14)

Whatsoever you ask in my name, THAT WILL I DO in order that the Father is glorified in the Son….If you shall ask any thing in my name…I WILL DO IT!  The assurance of having their prayers answered was a "Conditional Promise": because whatever you ask of the Lord must be in line with His Perfect Will. God answers 4 ways: Yes…No…Wait…Yes and I’ll give you more than you asked for! Second, whenever your prayers are answered and however Jesus answers them God gets the glory. Even your prayers being answered glories God. According to many scholars, this promise was primarily concerning the work of ministry in their evangelistic efforts to spread the Gospel.

The promise of The Comforter:  “The Coming of the “Indwelling” of the Holy Spirit               (verses 15-21)

Command: “If you love me….Keep my commandments  (If you do this) It is evidence that you really do love Jesus. Jesus said: "I will pray to the Father and He will send you another Comforter (Holy Spirit) that He might abide with you for ever". The world can’t receive Him or know Him. He is the “Spirit of Truth”. You know Him because He dwells in you. (remains)  Vs. 17

He is said to dwell in us when we are made pure, peaceable, holy, humble and when we become like him, and cherish his sacred influences. Jesus was to be taken away, but the Spirit would remain. It is also implied that they would know his presence, and have assurance that they were under his guidance. This was true of the apostles as inspired men, and it is true of all Christians that by ascertaining that they have the "graces of the Spirit" -joy, peace, long-suffering, etc. they know that they are the children of God.

I will not leave you comfortless: I’m not abandoning you and leaving you by yourselves. Yet, a little while (Actually 1 more day) the world will see me no more, (I’ll be crucified and die right before their eyes) but you see me (continually by faith) because I live, you will live also. (eternally)  

At that day, (after I am resurrected-raised from the dead) you shall know that I AM in my Father (We are physically united again in “oneness”) and you in me and I in you.   (vs. 20)

That is the day when Christ lives in us explained in the parable of the vine and the branches John 15:11) ) and in the future when we no longer see life through a glass darkly for one day (when Jesus comes back for us) we shall see Him face to face and we shall be like HIM in our glorified bodies 1 John 2:2)

If you have my commandments and keep them (do them in obedience) you (prove ) you love me. And you will be loved by God the Father, me and I will manifest myself to you.     (vs. 21)

 Concerning Jesus’ Manifestation: Judas (Jude) asked HOW? How is it that you will manifest yourself to us and not the world?   (verses 22-26)

If you love me you will keep My words (whatever Jesus said to them when teaching, comforting, and correcting) ; My Father will love you; We will come to you and live in you.          In other words:

 We will come to you with the manifestation of pardon, peace of conscience, and joy in the Holy Spirit. It means that God will manifest himself to our souls as a Father and Friend; that Jesus will manifest himself as a Savior; that is, that there will be shed abroad in the heart just views and proper feelings toward God and Christ. The Christian will rejoice in the perfections of God and of Christ, and will delight to contemplate the glories of a present Savior.

Whoever doesn’t love me will not keep whatever I have said to them. The WORD which you hear (from me) is not my words but Jehovah God’s given to me to speak to you. I’ve  said all that I said to console and guide you while I’m here with you. The “comforter” the Holy Ghost who God will send in my name will teach you all things and bring back to your remembrance whatever I have said to you.

The Gift of Peace                                                          (Verses 27-31)

Peace I leave with you.  (Not like the world’s connotation of peace.)

The peace of God is not found in houses, things and land, or in wealth, pleasure and fame.The peace of God is not found in the flattering words of people who pump you up in flattery, yet they are not sincere in most cases.The peace of God is not found in vain religious beliefs and in the many philosophies found in the traditions of men.The peace of God that Jesus gives will satisfy your soul, calm all your fears, soothe all of your doubts, and keep you calm despite all external turmoil around you. “Let not your  heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." You have heard what I had said to you… (referring back to vs. 2 and 3)

If you love me, you would be rejoicing instead of grieving over the fact that I must go back to heaven to complete the redemption work. I must do this so the Holy Spirit can bestow greater blessing upon you.         

 And now, I’m telling you all of this ahead of time (before my death, resurrection and ascension) so when it all happens, you might believe that I Am the one who God sent: your Messiah. From this point I won’t be saying much: The prince of this world is coming and he has nothing in me:

 Translation: Jesus was to die the next day. The Devil was poised and ready and now Jesus’ hour has come.  BUT…remember Jesus and Satan has absolutely nothing in common, therefore, there was absolutely no way Jesus was going to be overcome by evil, and absolutely no way Satan was going to prevail in any way. The "works" of Satan were already defeated!

 The purpose is: that the world may know that I (Jesus) love Jehovah (God the Father) and as the Father gave me commandment, even so do I. Let’s go here.

Jesus in his humanity was determined to fulfill every commandment God the Father had given him. Jesus was tempted in all points like as we are, yet without sin. (Hebrews 4:15)

 Jesus was obedient to the father in every way. and because he completely obedient, he showed that, in the face of calamities, persecutions, and temptations, he was still obligated and in his humanity to obey his Father. He did this so the world might know that he loved the Father. As for ourselves and the disciples, we should as they would bear trials and resist temptation; and so, by going through. every persecution and calamity, we demonstrate that we are empowered by the love of God, and determined to do God's will, even in the face of death. "Arise, let us go hence."
It has been commonly supposed that Jesus and the apostles now rose from the paschal supper and went to the Mount of Olives, and that the remainder of the discourse in John 15; 16, together with the prayer in John 17, occurred while on the way to the garden of Gethsemane; but some have supposed that they merely rose from the table, and that the discourse was finished before they left the room.

How This Chapter Applies to Us: Conclusion........
 What we are to learn here is having the correct knowledge about the character and work of Jesus Christ is the same thing as having correct knowledge of the counsels and plans of God. From this we can see, the reasons just like the disciples, why many of us don’t correct knowledge about the plans of God and the character of Jesus either. Because God’s ways are not like our ways and His thoughts are not like our thoughts, it explains why when God doesn’t move the way we think we quickly fall out with him and say I thought God was suppose to….  This is why it’s extremely important that we study to show ourselves approved unto God by reading, research, and meditation, divesting ourselves of all the erroneous things we believe about the Lord, and allowing the Holy ‘Spirit to open up the Scriptures and guide us into all truth about God, Jesus, the world, Israel, and ourselves.
There is the “Jesus” in our heads and then, the Jesus of the Bible. In many ways, the one we have imagined in our heads is not the same one as taught and revealed in the Bible. The Jesus in our head and imagination is our erroneous view. Until we align our thoughts and beliefs with the God of the Bible and with the Jesus taught in the same Bible, we will continue have anxiety over the cares of this world and thethe ministry we have been given to God's people.

Dr. William Edward Boddie   
0 Comments

Matthew Chapter 24:3-14: An" Exposition on End Time Prophecy"

3/7/2015

0 Comments

 
Picture


Matthew 24:3-15: "Signs of the Times...The End of The Age"

 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. But he who endures to the end shall be saved. 14 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.

Character Flaws

           The “character” of this “present age” can be described by the following glowing term: “flawed”. The flaws can be seen especially in the political arena.  If I had to describe the political arena in two words, those 2 words that describe politics, more so, the political behavior of the world leaders of this day would be “deceptive, and “emotionally troubling”.  Spanning the globe, moral degradation has exploded to the forefront of many societies virtually everywhere you look. Régime after regime, in the Middle East from Yemen to Jordan continue to fall to military coup after coup because of the anguish created by their economic collapses.  Their economic state stay in flux and the oppressed people of these varying countries have grown tired of dictator like strangleholds put on them by their political leaders. Their countries political leaders continue to get richer and the public continue to get poorer and the people fell more oppressed.

         Another glaring character flaw of this age is displayed in the many civil wars being fought and ever increasing provocations of more wars always on the horizon, not to mention the rampant spread of false “Messiahs” worldwide, even showing up in America and worldwide. 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 this world experiences the fulfillment of God’s “poured out wrath” upon this wicked generation as Jesus predicted in this passage of Scripture.

         From a personal perspective, I’m inclined to believe many of the events we that are experiencing in these modern times are beginning to “partial” fulfill those “latter day predictions.”  With each passing day, it is my belief we will continue to see more cataclysmic events unfold and take place.  Jesus’ made these bold prophetic predictions, and shared all these “signs” with us in response of his being rejection by the Jews and the religious leaders of His day. This is to say when Jesus comes back the second time, God the Father’s wrath (vial and bowl judgments) would have already been poured out on the wicked people inhabiting the earth. The Prophet Isaiah was on to something!

         In John 1:11, the Apostle John said “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 to be  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 into the end of the age. Look at what he says in Matthew 24:8: “These things must and will come to past that the end is here, but these are 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, particularly since Jesus’ crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension back into Heaven, many of these prophetic events have already occurred. Some of the “calamities” have a “re-occurring” theme about them because just because they have already repeated themselves numerous times already. Some of the others calamities will continue to occur occasionally throughout our time in history (the present) as modern history progresses forward. Their” repetitiveness” in a lot of cases will be based upon the nature of the prophecy and the things or events God intend them to have an effect upon. The prophecies, pertaining to geological and climatic changes in the weather patterns and ground shifting of the earth will be continuous because the weather patterns are always in flux. Various weather conditions always trigger the possibility of continuing periodically, at least until Jesus comes back the second time.

         Remember, Jesus said His second coming would be after the time of great calamities and fierce persecution of the Jews that will come from wicked nations who have always sought to annihilate and 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.

A “2-Fold” Bible Prophecy:

       This prophecy, the one concerning His Second Coming talked about by Jesus constitutes a “2-fold bible prophecy “. First, it’s “2-fold” prophecy in the 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 taken place 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 moment.

This Present Age

This “present age” according to dispensationalis is the” Dispensation of Grace”, or what we also call the “Church Age”.  My personal belief is “Pre-Millennialial and “Pre-Tribulationist” in scope thus, I share a common belief with all of the pre-millennial/ pre-tribulationists the common belief that Jesus could come back during our lifetime at any time.

         Leading up to Matthew 24, Jesus, having been recently rejected by the religious order 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 Chapter 22, the Pharisees tried to trap him with a question about the legality of paying taxes to Caesar. The Sadducees tried to trap him with a question about what happens to a childless woman after the resurrection. The irony of the question was the Sadducees didn’t believe in life after death.  And then the scribes tried to trap him with questions about the WORD: Master, what is the greatest commandment? They didn’t know they were questioning the WORD about the WORD!

         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, (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.(the Time of Jacob’s trouble) 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. (for 7 years) 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 as the rapture of the church has not occurred, nor has the Great Tribulation period begun, but the Bible says this event will occur when Jesus comes back the second time. Many other 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, this is that interval of time that covers the “church age” and sits in the “valley” between the time of the Pentecost that occurred in Acts Chapter 2 and the rapture of the church according to 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17.

Concerning the Jews  

     The Jews as a nation and as God’s chosen are presently in limbo (prophetically) during the church age.

The reason for this is they rejected Jesus as “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 when he returns to earth the second time. They will quickly discover that He is the same Jesus who their fathers killed and had  crucified on the cross, rejected as the merciful Savior and their King. They cried: “We have no king but Caesar”! Dr. Arthur E. Bloomfield 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 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 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 , in disobedience fell prey to this lying promise of becoming “as gods” and living life with “opened eyes” based on knowing good and evil.  By eating the fruit in disobedience Adam caused the downfall of the whole human race because by one man (Adam) sin entered into the world and death came as a result of sin.(Romans 5:12)  Sin didn’t just affect the relationship of man with God, The disobedient action 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 itself. 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 the adoption of worldly philosophy and godless principles and following Satan’s diabolical plan and build a “magnificent civilization without the help of God and without God at its helm”.

Consideration for the Present Age

     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 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. Many of these Islamic 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 have a 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 verbatim Dr. John F. Walvoord, former Chancellor of Dallas Theological Seminary, touted as one of the foremost prophetic scholars on page 113 of his book concerning end time prophecy. In his book, 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 the formation of a “world religion” is concerned, the quest for a one world government and a one world religious system has already begun and the Great Tribulation and the road to Armageddon is already well prepared and prophetically right around the corner. Sadly, many people who still reject Jesus as Messiah and who will be alive when these events occur 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: “Many Christians who have 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

  1. 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.

  2.  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.

  3. Be sure that the Biblical text provides enough information to draw a correct correspondence to current events.

  4. 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”.

  5. 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 taking heed to 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) Satan does is by glorifying sin, and promoting a life filled with unrighteousness (2 Thessalonians 2:9-11).  It’s because of Satan, this modern era has been deluged with strong delusions, lies, seduction, moral corruption, social degradation and because of other seducing spirits (demons) at his disposal, he’s the mastermind behind the illegal investment schemes known as “Ponzi” schemes that bilked many investors out of huge amounts of money and ruin the finances of many unsuspecting people. Several come to mind.  For one, there was the “Enron Scandal.  Recently as a few years ago, Bernard Madoff, the former non-executive chairman of the NASDAQ stock exchange was found to be involved in a major Ponzi scheme, an illegal investment scheme that had a devastating effect on many retired workers of Enron Corporation back in October 200. Madoff, the now deceased former CEO of Enron bilked many of retired workers of their retirement funds through investing their pension fund in fraudulent investments which eventually led to the demise of the Enron Corporation. The sad end of the story was bitter sweet. It was sweet because the workers in a class action suit won their case, but bitter because the attorneys handling the defendant retirees winning their class action lawsuit got the  bulk of the disputed money in legal and attorney’s fees.  Allen Stanford, who eventually received a 110 year prison sentence for his part in a 7-billion dollar Ponzi scheme as he orchestrated his gigantic scheme in Houston, Texas.

      Tragically, 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 these corporate criminals 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). These nations came together because of the serious economic instability plaguing  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.

Concerning “False Christs”

     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 known 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.

Wars and Rumors

     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. (sourceBBC.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.

     Dr Warren Wiersbe wrote an exposition 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 because Agent Orange was in 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

 

 

 

 

                                                                   

 

0 Comments

Daniel: God's Statesman.....God's Prophet

3/1/2015

0 Comments

 
Picture
   

The book of Daniel is a very intriguing book. The book opened up to reveal the  demise of the Southern kingdom, now captured by Nebuchadnezzar and  in the beginning stages of their Babylonian captivity. Their captivity was executed in 3 stages starting in 607 BC and culminated 8 years later in 597 BC, when the city of Jerusalem and the temple were destroyed. This captivity marked the beginning of the 70 year prophecy of captivity that Jeremiah predicted in Jeremiah 25:1-11.This captivity became the "Genesis" of the Dispensation of “Time of the Gentiles”, that period in modern history when the Gentile nations would be in power and in control of many of the world’s events. This period, according to the Bible that would last beyond the "Rapture" of the Christian Church and the "time" of "Jacob's Trouble", also known as the 7-year Tribulation Period and culminate at the beginning of the “Millennial Age”, when Jesus Christ comes back according to Revelation 19 and establishes His Millennial Kingdom and reign in Jerusalem for 1000 years. We are at this moment in history still in that dispensation.

Concerning Daniel: "Statesman....Prophet"

Daniel is considered one of four great prophets,  even although he is not once spoken of in the Old Testament as a prophet, his life and prophecies are recorded in the Book of Daniel. According to Daniel 1:3, he was a descendant from one of the noble families of Judah and was probably born in Jerusalem about 623 B.C., during the reign of Josiah. At the first deportation of the Jews by Nebuchadnezzar (the kingdom of Israel had come to an end nearly a century before), or immediately after his victory over the Egyptians at the second battle of Carchemish, in the fourth year of the reign of Jehoiakim in 606 B.C.. Daniel and other three noble youths (Hananiah, Meshael, and Azariah) were carried off to Babylon, along with part of the vessels of the temple. There he was obliged to enter into the service of the king of Babylon, and in accordance with the custom of the age received the Chaldean name of Belteshazzar, i.e., "prince of Bel," or "Bel protect the king!" His residence in Babylon was very probably in the palace of Nebuchadnezzar, now identified with a mass of shapeless mounds called the Kasr, on the right bank of the river.

His training in the schools of the wise men in Babylon  found in Daniel 1:4 was to fit him for service to the empire. He was distinguished during this period for his piety and his strict observance of the Mosaic law (Daniel 1:8-16), and gained the confidence and esteem of those who were over him. His habit of attention gained during his education in Jerusalem enabled him soon to master the wisdom and learning of the Chaldeans, and even to excel his compeers.(Taken from the Easton's Bible Dictionary, PC Study Bible formatted electronic database Copyright © 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Daniel's Role as a Major Prophet

We tend to think of Daniel simply as a prophet because of the prophetic dimension of his book, but we must remember that Daniel also served in multiple positions in both the Babylonian Empire under King Nebuchadnezzar as the supervisor over the Babylonian wise men, astrologers and magicians and in the Persian Empire under both King Darius and Cyrus the Great, king of Persia as an advisor in the Courts of foreign kings. Called to be a Prophet by Jehovah God, Daniel prophesied during the reign of King Jehoiakim, king of Judah. He remained in governmental service throughout the reigns of all the kings of Babylon and into the reign of Cyrus of Persia after the Persians became the dominant world power (Daniel 1:21, and Chapter 10:1). Daniel’s prophetic ministry started during the time of Kings Nebuchadnezzar and Cyrus, Daniel’s prophetic gifts can be broken up into 3 major Categories:

Daniel's Role as a Dream Interpreter
Daniel 2:27-46
Daniel answered in the presence of the king, and said, "The secret which the king has demanded, the wise men, the astrologers, the magicians, and the soothsayers cannot declare to the king.  But there is a God in heaven who reveals secrets, and He has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar what will be in the latter days. Your dream, and the visions of your head upon your bed, were these: As for you, O king, thoughts came to your mind while on your bed, about what would come to pass after this; and He who reveals secrets has made known to you what will be. But as for me, this secret has not been revealed to me because I have more wisdom than anyone living, but for our sakes who make known the interpretation to the king, and that you may know the thoughts of your heart.

"You, O king, were watching; and behold, a great image! This great image, whose splendor was excellent, stood before you; and its form was awesome. This image's head was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs* of bronze,  its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay.*  You watched while a stone was cut out without hands, which struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces.  Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were crushed together, and became like chaff from the summer threshing floors; the wind carried them away so that no trace of them was found. And the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.

"This is the dream. Now we will tell the interpretation of it before the king. You, O king, are a king of kings. For the God of heaven has given you a kingdom, power, strength, and glory; and wherever the children of men dwell, or the beasts of the field and the birds of the heaven, He has given them into your hand, and has made you ruler over them all — you are this head of gold. But after you shall arise another kingdom inferior to yours; then another, a third kingdom of bronze, which shall rule over all the earth. And the fourth kingdom shall be as strong as iron, inasmuch as iron breaks in pieces and shatters everything; and like iron that crushes, that kingdom will break in pieces and crush all the others.  Whereas you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter's clay and partly of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; yet the strength of the iron shall be in it, just as you saw the iron mixed with ceramic clay. And as the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly fragile. As you saw iron mixed with ceramic clay, they will mingle with the seed of men; but they will not adhere to one another, just as iron does not mix with clay. And in the days of these kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to other people; it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever. Inasmuch as you saw that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it broke in pieces the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold — the great God has made known to the king what will come to pass after this. The dream is certain, and its interpretation is sure."

In Daniel chapter 2, we find his first appearance was as an interpreter of dreams. Daniel, after he and the 3 Hebrew boys prayed all night, goes to the king and interprets his dream. He conveys to the king that each metal in the image he saw in his dream represents a future world empire that would succeed his great empire and the stone that broke the image into pieces represented a never ending kingdom that would subdue his kingdom and every succeeding kingdom or empire that were  to follow his. The kingdoms that would succeed Babylon were: The Medes and Persian Empire, The Greek Empire and the Roman Empire.  

" Daniel Explains the Second Dream
Daniel 4:18-27
"This dream I, King Nebuchadnezzar, have seen. Now you, Belteshazzar, declare its interpretation, since all the wise men of my kingdom are not able to make known to me the interpretation; but you are able, for the Spirit of the Holy God is in you.Then Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, was astonished for a time, and his thoughts troubled him. So the king spoke, and said, "Belteshazzar, do not let the dream or its interpretation trouble you." Belteshazzar answered and said, "My lord, may the dream concern those who hate you, and its interpretation concern your enemies!  "The tree that you saw, which grew and became strong, whose height reached to the heavens and which could be seen by all the earth, 21 whose leaves were lovely and its fruit abundant, in which was food for all, under which the beasts of the field dwelt, and in whose branches the birds of the heaven had their home —  it is you, O king, who have grown and become strong; for your greatness has grown and reaches to the heavens, and your dominion to the end of the earth.

 "And inasmuch as the king saw a watcher, a holy one, coming down from heaven and saying, 'Chop down the tree and destroy it, but leave its stump and roots in the earth, bound with a band of iron and bronze in the tender grass of the field; let it be wet with the dew of heaven, and let him graze with the beasts of the field, till seven times pass over him'; this is the interpretation, O king, and this is the decree of the Most High, which has come upon my lord the king:They shall drive you from men, your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field, and they shall make you eat grass like oxen. They shall wet you with the dew of heaven, and seven times shall pass over you, till you know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever He chooses. "And inasmuch as they gave the command to leave the stump and roots of the tree, your kingdom shall be assured to you, after you come to know that Heaven rules. Therefore, O king, let my advice be acceptable to you; break off your sins by being righteous, and your iniquities by showing mercy to the poor. Perhaps there may be a lengthening of your prosperity."

In the 4th chapter, Daniel's interprets Nebuchadnezzar’s “tree” dream, hewn at the command of an angel, warning the king that his arrogance would cause God to drive him insane for 7 years until the day he recognized that God is sovereign and all kingdoms, nations and people are subject to his sovereignty including the king himself.
   
Daniel 5:25-30
 "And this is the inscription that was written: MENE,* MENE, TEKEL,* UPHARSIN.*
 This is the interpretation of each word. Mene : God has numbered your kingdom, and finished it;  Tekel : You have been weighed in the balances, and found wanting; Peres : Your kingdom has been divided, and given to the Medes and Persians."* Then Belshazzar gave the command, and they clothed Daniel with purple and put a chain of gold around his neck, and made a proclamation concerning him that he should be the third ruler in the kingdom.

Daniel Role as a Interpreter of "Signs"

Daniel's third great appearance in the book is in chapter 5. It is there he is called upon to explain the extraordinary writing upon the wall of Belshazzar's palace, which foretold the end of the Babylonian empire and the incoming of the Medes and Persians. For this service Belshazzar as promised, decreed that Daniel was to be clothed with purple, a chain of gold put around his neck, and he was made the third ruler in the kingdom. As he revealed the meaning of the mysterious "handwriting on the wall," he made it plain that the Babylonian Empire would be defeated by the Medes and the Persians. This happened exactly as Daniel predicted in Daniel 5:13-31, and he continued as a servant in the court of the conquering Persian king.

Daniel's Role as a "Seer" (Dreams and Visions) 
   
Daniel 7:1-8
In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon, Daniel had a dream and visions of his head while on his bed. Then he wrote down the dream, telling the main facts.*
Daniel spoke, saying, "I saw in my vision by night, and behold, the four winds of heaven were stirring up the Great Sea.  And four great beasts came up from the sea, each different from the other.

The first was like a lion, and had eagle's wings. (Babylonian Empire)  I watched till its wings were plucked off; and it was lifted up from the earth and made to stand on two feet like a man, and a man's heart was given to it.
 
"And suddenly another beast, a second, like a bear. It was raised up on one side, and had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. (Medes and Persian Empire: a "dual Empire with 3 "ribs" : Lydia, Babylon and Egypt) And they said thus to it: 'Arise, devour much flesh!'

"After this I looked, and there was another, like a leopard, which had on its back four wings of a bird. The beast also had four heads, and dominion was given to it.  (Greek Empire had 4 "Heads" Thrace, Macedonia, Syria, and Egypt))

 "After this I saw in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, exceedingly strong. It had huge iron teeth; it was devouring, breaking in pieces, and trampling the residue with its feet. It was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns".  (Roman Empire: still in existence and prophesied to return to dominance in the last days.)
  
The Roman Empire has never has never been defeated fully.  Even though the Roman Empire does not visible exist, the government system  that personified the Roman Empire still is a controlling power among the nations.  In the future, there will be a revived Roman Empire (currently being formed) that will comprise of 10 Federated Kingdoms  (currently there are 13) in The European Commonwealth) who will be ruled by the last Roman Emperor and Gentile ruler: the Anti-Christ as head in the near future.

 I was considering the horns, and there was another horn, a little one, coming up among them, before whom three of the first horns were plucked out by the roots. And there, in this horn, were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking pompous words. (The Anti-Christ) NKJV

Daniel, in the last six chapters operates as a seer of four visions of his own visions, all of these visions were revelations and deeper explanations of the “Nebuchadnezzan” vision given. God gave him a vision of "4 wild beasts" that described the character of the empires that would succeed the Babylonian Empire. Each one would have great influence on Israel, other nations as a whole, well as fulfilling the prophetic predicting of the final triumph of the Messiah's kingdom (pictured as the great stone hurled from heaven), striking the 10 toes of the colossal image, totally destroying the entire image and giving the Messiah complete triumph over all of the Gentile world empires.
   
Daniel 7:9-12"
I watched till thrones were put in place, And the Ancient of Days was seated; His garment was white as snow, And the hair of His head was like pure wool. His throne was a fiery flame.Its wheels a burning fire; A fiery stream issued And came forth from before Him. A thousand thousands ministered to Him,Ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him.The court* was seated, And the books "I watched then because of the sound of the pompous words which the horn was speaking; I watched till the beast was slain, and its body destroyed and given to the burning flame. 12 As for the rest of the beasts, they had their dominion taken away, yet their lives were prolonged for a season and a time.

Daniel also had a vision of a "judgment Scene".

In this vision, Daniel revealed in these “personal prophecies” that the saints of God will be given the privilege of judging the world, and the destruction of the blasphemous king (The Anti-Christ) at the Lord's Second coming in Revelation 19. Daniel refers to this in Daniel 7:8, verse 25; and Chapter 11:36) These same prophecies that were forth told by Daniel, are further  revealed in the New Testament by Paul in 1 Corinthians 6:2;  and 2 Thessalonians 2:3-12.. The prophecy concerning the "Stone Kingdom" was also referred to us by Jesus Christ, as He referenced "the stone" smiting the image  in Daniel 2:34-35, and in verses 44-45. Matthew wrote about this in Matthew 21:44. The final personal vision Daniel had was concerning Jesus, the Son of Man recciving the Kingdom of God.

Daniel's Role as an Official of the Kings:
Daniel 6:1-3
It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom one hundred and twenty satraps, to be over the whole kingdom; and over these, three governors, of whom Daniel was one, that the satraps might give account to them, so that the king would suffer no loss. Then this Daniel distinguished himself above the governors and satraps, because an excellent spirit was in him; and the king gave thought to setting him over the whole realm.

 In addition to his duties as seer and as interpreter of signs and dreams, Daniel also stood high in the governmental service of Nebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar, and Darius the Mede, and perhaps also of Cyrus. The Book of Daniel, our only reliable source of information on this subject, does not tell us much about his civil duties and performances. It does say, however, that he was chief of the wise men, that he was in the gate of the king, and that he was governor over the whole province of Babylon under Nebuchadnezzar; that Belshazzar made him the third ruler in his kingdom; and that Darius made him one of the three presidents to whom his hundred and twenty satraps were to give account; and that he even thought to set him over his whole kingdom. In all of these positions he seems to have conducted himself with faithfulness and judgment.

While in the service of Darius the Mede, he aroused the antipathy and jealousy of the other presidents and of the satraps. Unable to find any fault with his official acts, they induced the king to make a decree, apparently general in form and purpose, but really aimed at Daniel alone. They saw that they could find no valid accusation against him, unless they found it in connection with something concerning the law of his God. They therefore caused the king to make a decree that no one should make a request of anyone for the space of thirty days, save of the king. Daniel, having publicly prayed three times a day as he was in the habit of doing, was caught in the act, accused, and on account of the irrevocability of a law of the Medes and Persians, was condemned in accordance with the decree to be cast into a den of lions. The king was much troubled at this, but was unable to withhold the punishment. However, he expressed to Daniel his belief that his God in whom he trusted continually would deliver him; and so indeed it came to pass. For in the morning, when the king drew near to the mouth of the den, and called to him, Daniel said that God had sent His angel and shut the mouths of the lions. So Daniel was taken up unharmed, and at the command of the king his accusers, having been cast into the den, were destroyed before they reached the bottom.

Daniel's Prayer Life
Daniel was also a person of deep piety.  His book is characterized not only by prophecies of the distant future but also by a sense of wonder at the presence of God. From his youth Daniel was determined to live by God's law in a distant land. Daniel had a deep prayer life. In every instance where a important decision was made either for something of a personal nature of when pressed into duty as a seer or a dream interpreter. Daniel prayed 3 times a day from his window as he faced toward Jerusalem in his worship of Jehovah.. In moments of crisis, Daniel turned first to God in prayer before turning to the affairs of state (Daniel 2:14-23). His enemies
even used his regularity at prayer to trap him and turn the king against him. In Daniel Chapter 6, the grace of God protected Daniel In the second part of his book, as Daniel prayed and meditated to God, God gave him four new visions that further explained the meaning of the colossal image that was made of different metals and miry clay. After one of his stunning prophecies (chapter. 9), Daniel prayed a noble prayer of confession for his own sins and the sins of his people. This prayer was based on Daniel's study of the Book of Jeremiah (Daniel 9:2). He was a man truly devoted to God.

Daniel's Prophetic Predictions: "The End Times"
Daniel 7:7-8

"After this I saw in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, exceedingly strong. It had huge iron teeth; it was devouring, breaking in pieces, and trampling the residue with its feet. It was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns. I was considering the horns, and there was another horn, a little one, coming up among them, before whom three of the first horns were plucked out by the roots. And there, in this horn, were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking pompous words".
Concerning The Rule of Antichrist
According to Larkin’s book entitled “The Book of Daniel”, Daniel describes the “Little horn as waxing exceedingly great, toward the South, toward the East, and toward the Pleasant land (Palestine). This “horn” (Antichrist) waxed greatly, even unto the host of Heaven, casting down some of the Host and stars to the ground and stamp upon them. The Angel Gabriel called him “A king of fierce countenance, an “understander” of dark sentences. Gabriel said this king will stand up, being empowered by superhuman strength, (Satan) destroying wonderfully, prospering and practicing and shall destroy the mighty and the Holy  People (the Jews).The 
Antichrist's primary work is deception. Satan’s work reaches its climax in the Antichrist, who receives his authority and power from the dragon, Satan (Revelation 13:4)

The work of Satan through the Antichrist is clearly rooted in the prophecies of Daniel. Daniel spoke of a dreadful beast with ten horns and one little horn (Daniel 7:7-8). The Antichrist will be the sum total of all the beasts referred to in Daniel Chapter 7 . He will speak arrogant, boastful words; and he will be aided by the False Prophet who will make the entire earth worship him and receive his identification mark according to Revelation 13:16-17. The number of the beast, according to the Apostle John, is 666-a mysterious code name. We do know that "6" in the Bible represents man. Anyone who accepts this mark and swears allegiance and worships the Antichrist will experience severe and eternal doom through the wrath of God from the pouring out of out of His "vial" and "bowl" judgments. The Antichrist will make war against Christ and His army, but he is finally captured and is "cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone" 

Concerning the European Union
 The European Union is comprised of a federation of 10 nations, represented by the 10 horns in Daniel 7:7. Their ruler will be the Antichrist. It is also the “revised” Roman Empire, though not visible in the sense of what we call a “visible empire, yet visible through these 10 kingdoms in political influence, economic power and the laws they abide by as a union. In Dr. Clarence Larkin’s book “The Book of Daniel”, it’s a weaker version of the old Roman Empire, which was known for its “iron” clad rule. The 10 toes as Daniel revealed were consistent of both iron mixed with miry clay. Iron represents an “imperialistic” rule combined with “democracy”. This type of government is called a “democratic monarchy”. This final empire, like the once visible Roman Empire will have a emperor and, according to the latter day prophecy of Daniel, this Roman monarch (Antichrist) will be the last ruler of a Gentile kingdom. In the beginning of his rule, he will use democracy to obtain his goal as ruler, brokering a peace treaty for 7 years with Israel, then after 3 and ½ years
break the covenant and revert to ”imperialistic” or dictator rule. This type of government is swayed mostly by self centered politicians and other demagogues that promote their own selfish agendas as they take power in and control of the government. .The European Union is currently in place, and is comprises currently of 13 nations. Daniel predicted that 3 nations will be subdued by the “little” horn (Antichrist). This can possibly happen in this century given the unstable conomic and political climate currently going on in Europe and worldwide.

Concerning Global Increased Knowledge
 Daniel 12:4

But you, Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book until the time of the end; many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall incr

 Before the second stage of the second coming of the Messiah (Jesus Christ), there will be a sharp increase of knowledge and powe According to Daniel 12:4, many people shall run to from and knowledge will increase. There would be an advance in knowledge on all the subjects of religion, Our own age has furnished a good illustration of the meaning of what Gabriel revealed to Daniel. Jesus proclaimed in Matthew 24:14:” And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come”.  Even now with the advent of satellite and cable, programming of Biblical subjects and fiber optic technology, the airways in these modern times have been filled with still more and more knowledge of the Lord. Because of the advent of worldwide broadcasting, many have been purified by hearing the Word of God and accepting Jesus Christ as Lord and personal Savior.

 The “wise” shall understand that the increase of the knowledge of God was prophetic and the advent of television programming like TBN Broadcasting Network and The Word Network are part of that prophetic fulfillment. These “new converts” are said to have been made purified and made white and tried, but those who are wicked shall became more wicked.

In Daniel Chapter 11, there are several prophecies that have already been fulfilled. This is a partial list of some of those prophecies:
  1. There would be a succession of 3 “prominent” Persian kings: They are: Cambyses, Smerdis, and Darius Hystaspis. A 4th king would go to war with Greece named Xerxes.

     

  2. The Greeks (The 3rd of the 4 future Empires) under the leadership of Alexander the Great would defeat the Median-Persian Empire and  rule with great dominion and have a distinction that surpassed all conquerors that came before him.

     

  3.  After the death of Alexander the Great, The Greek Empire would be divided into four parts- Thrace, Macedonia, Syria, and Egypt. 

  4. And the king of the south shall be strong, and one of his princes; and he shall be strong  above him, and have dominion; his dominion shall be a great dominion.

     

The king of the south was Ptolemy Lagus, The prince was Seleucus Nicator, who   possessed Syria, Babylon, Media, and the neighboring countries. This was the king of the  north, for his dominions lay north of Judea.


Berenice, daughter of Ptolemy, king of Egypt, married Antiochus, king of Syria. and agreed to a truce from war on condition that Antiochus would put away his wife Laodice and her children, which he did. Berenice brought an immense fortune to her husband, all things appeared to go on well for a time, but she’s never reign. Antiochus recalled his former wife Laodice and her children; and Laodice, fearing that he might recall Berenice, poisoned him,

 

















































0 Comments

    Author

    Dr. William Edward Boddie

    Archives

    August 2019
    July 2018
    October 2017
    February 2017
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011

    Categories

    All
    Advent
    Apostle
    Armor Of Righteousness
    Belial
    Body Of Christ
    Born Again
    Brotherhood
    Chastisement
    Church
    Church Age
    Communion
    Disciples
    Divine Indwelling
    Eternity Past
    Gentiles
    Gift Of Healings
    Gift Of Helps
    Harvest
    Hidden Truths
    Holy Spirit
    Hypocrites
    Illumination For Life
    Inheritance
    Interpretation Of Tongues
    Israel
    Jacob's Sons
    Lawlessness
    Love Of God
    Mystery
    Nicodemus
    Order Of Worship
    Pharisee
    Prophesying
    Revelation
    Salvation
    Sanctification
    Sowing
    Spiritual Gifts
    Tares
    The Kingdom Of God
    Thorny Ground
    Tumults
    Unequally Yoked
    Walking In Jesus\
    Wayside

    RSS Feed

Proudly powered by Weebly