Tolerance
In 2008 America, atheists placed a sign next to a manger scene that says there is no God. They claimed their rights were being violated and that Christian symbols on public property also violated the separation of church and state. Gay people were demanding equal rights and the right to be married by the state. A group of them even invaded a church service and took over, demanding their rights. Moslem minorities were demanding special public schools. Illegal aliens were waving Mexican flags and demanding a right to vote in the U.S. What is the answer to all this chaos? What is the deciding factor in a pluralistic society?
In any nation, the majority rules unless a tyrannical minority, or a just law seizes it. Either “might” or “right” will rule. Minorities have the legal right to believe what they want, but they do not have the right to “take over” by force. So, they resort to “might” (i.e. force).
Pagans dominated Babylon and God sold His people into Babylonian captivity because of the broken covenant. He commanded His people to submit to Babylon and to pray for the peace of the place. Daniel and his three friends purposed in their hearts to not defile themselves with the king’s food because it had been sacrificed to demons. This tells us that faithful believers can tolerate the dominant culture and still not be defiled by it. We can be in the world and not of it. As a minority, it is rude to demand our rights. It is not only rude; it is presumptuous, arrogant, and intolerant unless the law requires it as in the case of Martin Luther King. But even in that case, force was not used nor should it be.
When Persia freed God’s people to return to Jerusalem, there were minorities in Palestine that did not tolerate the rebuilding of the Jerusalem culture. In this case, the Jews were right in resisting them because the law had given them permission and had even partially financed them.
Then, when Greek culture took over the world, Antiochus Epiphenes made a concerted effort to impose it on the Jewish minority by force. He made a law against circumcision and forced Jews to offer incense to Apollo. The religion of the one true God was hanging by a thread. He sacrificed a pig on the altar of the Temple and placed an idol in the Temple court. A small group, led by the Maccabee family blew the trumpet, fled to the wilderness and raised armed resistance. Against impossible odds they prevailed, recaptured Jerusalem and cleansed the Temple. Happy Hanukkah.
Daniel had prophesied that this would happen over 400 years previously. He said that the reason for this trial was the sins of the Jews themselves (Dan 8). He also said there would be a faithful remnant that would do exploits for God (Dan 11). The Maccabees were the faithful champions that saved our godly heritage.
Now let us go back a few thousand years to the time of Abraham. He lived in a world of idolatry, but had enough freedom to establish a godly culture within his own camp. God told him he would have a descendant through whom all nations would eventually be blessed and that the land of the Amorites already belonged to him. (The only way to be blessed is to be a child of Abraham. Only those who enter the covenant of Abraham are blessed with special grace. Others are blessed with common grace. God rains on the just and the unjust alike. That is common grace. Special grace makes us acceptable to God. Common grace does not.)
God told Abraham his descendants would live in Egypt under a pagan culture for four generations and would not return to rule that land until then because the cup of wrath for the Amorites was not yet full. Four hundred years later Moses led them out of Egypt and God commanded them to destroy the inhabitants of that land because of their idolatry and degenerate culture. It had become so degenerate that it had to be destroyed in order to eventually bless all nations. The pollution of degenerate cultures had to be stamped out. There was to be no tolerance because the situation demanded it. God’s Law must dominate. Jesus defined love as the fulfillment of the Law. The destruction of pagan cultures was necessary “tough love” in order to save the world. A few must die in order to save many.
But God’s people failed to drive out all the idolatrous inhabitants of the land and God sold them to their enemies as judgment. Under oppression they then cried out to God and He rose up a judge to deliver them. This happened several times until there was no remedy and they were finally taken to Babylon in 606 BC.
In spite of these failures and judgments, the prophets predicted a Savior would come and all the ends of the earth would remember and turn to the Lord; all nations would bow to Jehovah (Psalm 22:27). They said that His kingdom would destroy all the others and that His kingdom would never be destroyed. He came, was crucified and arose in fulfillment of prophecy. He ascended to the Father and is now ruling with all authority in heaven and in the earth. “Yes. All kings shall bow to Him” (Psalm 72).
The most powerful pagan empire of all time ended up bowing to him 300 years later. But no sooner had that happened than barbarians from the north destroyed it. Then those same barbarians bowed to Him and became Christian Europe.
But now Europe and the West are living in a “post Christian” era. They have forgotten God just as the Jews did before they were carried to Babylon. The humanism of the French Revolution has taken over the culture in Europe and a minority in America now rules. Due to the Puritan foundation of America, Christians are still a majority, but are being defiled by the minority that is in control of the media and the education system. Eating the king’s food is defiling Christians and their children cannot even speak the language of Canaan.
The “Amorite” minority of the secular progressives are now changing the laws and the culture by means of tyrannical activist judges and legislators. The Hollywood culture and the educators love it so and cheer them on so they can be free to fornicate and destroy our children. It is not enough for them to do it privately. They have an agenda to impose their culture on Christians. They tolerate every pagan abomination, but do not tolerate God’s Law and Judeo Christian culture unless it is practiced in private. Their culture must be dominant by all means possible. They by no means tolerate Christian culture. “Why do the nations rage and the people imagine a vain thing? The kings of the earth take counsel together against the Lord and against His Christ, saying, ‘Let us break their bands asunder and cast their cords from us.’ He that sits in the heavens shall laugh and make fun of them” (Psalm 2).
When gay people insist on “coming out,” they force us to accept their culture and to violate our own conscience. It is either their culture or ours. It cannot be both. Neutrality is a myth. By tolerating their culture, we violate ours. When they object to “Don’t ask; don’t tell,” they impose a tyranny on the majority. They want their way and will throw a fit to get it. They will cram it down our throats if they can and make people feel guilty for not tolerating them. God hates the sin and loves the sinner.
The reason this is happening to America is the same reason it happened to the Jews. God sold them to their enemies because of their own sins. Godly principles made America great. Godly laws and culture gave birth to prosperity, and the daughter is eating the mother. God warned His people that after He prospered them they would forget Him.
What were the sins of Christians that caused this? Bad theology. Gnostic dualism that separates the sacred from the secular and says, “The Lord is coming soon anyway, so why dominate the culture? Why polish brass on a sinking ship?” Christians abandoned the theology of the Puritans that made America great. They cut off the legs of the trunk with a truncated gospel that seeks to escape the world instead of changing it. That is a gospel without legs and not the full gospel. They think “getting saved” is just a matter of going to heaven and they forget that the purpose of salvation is not going to heaven. The purpose of salvation is to restore all things as they were in Eden. Our prayer should be “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” The pastors have also swallowed the lie of “separation of God and state.” Many of them actually believe that preachers have no business getting involved in cultural issues and politics. Can you name one man of God in the Bible that was not involved in politics and/or cultural issues?
The eclipsing of the Puritan Hope is the cause. The Calvinist Reformers and the Puritans brought the Reformation and the Great Awakenings that changed the world and brought great liberty and justice like the world had never seen. In spite of their dark times and persecution, they believed the knowledge of the glory of the Lord would cover the earth as the waters cover the sea. The Puritan Calvinists brought a new kind of government called republican democracy and capitalism. The first constitution in the history of mankind was written as a result of Puritan Calvinist Thomas Hooker’s sermon in 1639 Connecticut. “Freedom under law” was their watch cry. It is true that at first the Massechusetts Bay Colony inherited some of the medieval errors by not tolerating heresies, but in a few decades they moderated. This then resulted in liberty and justice for all. But sin was not tolerated.
The current “secular progressives” tolerate sin, but do not tolerate God’s Law. God’s word does not tolerate them because God’s love wants to bless all nations and the only way to do it is by the kingship of His Son. He says to the nations and their rulers, “Kiss the Son lest He be angry and you perish from the way when His wrath is kindled but a little” (Psalm 2:12). He says that the nation and kingdom that will not obey His Son shall be destroyed (Isa 60:12). Unless there is a radical reversal, God will replace what we knew of America with a socialist godless culture. This will result in financial downfall similar to what happened with every other socialist experiment. But just as Christian Britain was replaced by Pagan Anglo Saxons, and re-converted by the Irish missionaries, so others like Chinese Christians will re-convert America.
Jesus promised that He would build His church and the gates of hell would not prevail against it. Daniel’s vision saw that His kingdom would grow and grow until it becomes a great mountain and fills the whole earth. God promised His Son, “Ask of me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession” (Psalm 2:8). That prayer, because God so loved the world, shall be answered. The meek shall inherit the earth.
When Christians are a minority as they are for example in China, we submit to majority rule as long as we are not required to disobey our God. Christians are the best citizens of any country. They work hard and do not commit crimes. True Christians are willing to pay the price for civil disobedience unto death.
In Christian nations, minorities must submit to the majority, also.
The progress of the atheistic and humanistic French Revolution has taken over much of American culture by means of treasonous activist judges. Instead of submitting to the original intent of the Constitution, they interpret it as a so-called “living” document and re-invented it according to their personal preferences. The Supreme Court in the 1890’s declared America to be a Christian nation, but in 1948 Justice Black reversed that with the new doctrine of “separation of church and state.” Based on that decision, the Court kicked God out of the public schools in the early sixties. The “hippie belch” out of the bottomless pit followed that. Then came the Court decision to legalize abortion in the early 70’s.
These decisions were unlawful and treasonous. Therefore, Christians are obligated to resist them and be willing to pay the price. The law of King Jesus must be obeyed. We must obey God rather than men (Acts 2).
The argument of the secular progressives now is what is called “multiculturalism.” Christianity is the only true multicultural nation. Babel’s attempt to unite everyone under one single government resulted in confusion and division. But on the Day of Pentecost God poured out his Spirit on people from all nations. They spoke in several languages, but understood each other because they were united under One Head. The secular progressives seek to “head up” everyone under the headship of “equal rights.” Their aim is to “cut off” our Head. The cutting off of heads in the French Revolution continues today.
A true Christian nation allows freedom of religion as long as others do not try to replace Christian culture. Christianity is what brought freedom of religion in the first place. The humanist faith of the secular progressives is a religion. Religions are based on presuppositions that are taken by faith. Evolution is a dogma taken by faith. Atheism is a religion. They presuppose the Bible is not true and base all their science and reason on that. Christians presuppose it is true and base all their reason on that. “Why do the nations rage and the peoples imagine a vain thing?” The real reason the Bible is rejected is because they have an “axe to grind.” They consider its laws to be “binding cords.” “They gather together against the Lord and against His Christ saying, ‘Let us break their bands asunder and cast their cords from us”’ (Psalm 2). They hate God’s Law and want to be “free.” They reject the notion that sin results in slavery. “He that sins is a slave” (John 8:34).
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Dogs THAT CAN'T BARK
A Republican Christian heard my radio spot about socialism and abortion. He said I had no right as a pastor to be involved in politics. I asked if he could name one man of God in the Bible that had nothing to do with politics. He could not name one. Can you? Christians in America could be by far the largest voting block. We could turn this nation in one election toward righteousness in our laws. The two obstacles to this are gnostic dualism and fear.
Dualism separates the sacred & the secular. That is the spirit of anti-christ. Fear of man is the other problem. American freedom never would have rung if the preachers of the founding fathers' day had been "girlie men" like so many today. Satan whispers, "Play it safe, boys. Keep your offerings rolling! If not, your heads might roll," like John the Baptist who rebuked a king. God help us not to be like the shepherds described by Isaiah.
"They are all silent dogs; they cannot bark..." (Isa 56:9-11).
Thursday, August 28, 2008
The Buffoon Gods
I have many times referred to the celebrities of America and the Hollywood crowd as the buffoon gods of Mt. Olympus. Zeus and his companions were more immoral than the fools that worshipped them. It is altogether fitting that the 2008 Democratic Convention in Denver should have a mock-up of a Greek temple in the background for the speech given by the “son of Zeus.” Could the decision to have a Greek temple in the background be a Freudian slip?
If this son of a god becomes president will he be another Caesar? Hail Caesar! A god indeed! “There is no other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved, but the name Caesar.” He will save us with health care for every citizen. He will visit vengeance on the capitalists, seize their stolen profits, and distribute them among the poor.
O! How the masses swoon. There’s a sucker born every day.
If this son of a god becomes president will he be another Caesar? Hail Caesar! A god indeed! “There is no other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved, but the name Caesar.” He will save us with health care for every citizen. He will visit vengeance on the capitalists, seize their stolen profits, and distribute them among the poor.
O! How the masses swoon. There’s a sucker born every day.
Monday, August 4, 2008
Was Jesus A Socialist?
Was Jesus A Socialist?
Some people think Jesus was (is) a socialist. Socialism favors state control of the economy and the re-distribution of wealth. In other words, “rob the rich to feed the poor.”
Socialism From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:
Socialism refers to any of various economic and political concepts of state or collective (i.e. public) ownership and administration of the means of production and distribution of goods and services, some of which have been developed into more or less highly articulated theories and/or praxis. In a Marxist or labor-movement definition of the term, socialism is a stage of society in Marxist theory transitional between capitalism and communism and distinguished by unequal distribution of goods and pay according to work done with the goal of creating a socio-economic system in which property and the distribution of wealth are subject to control by the community. This control may be exercised on behalf of the state, through a market, or through popular collectives such as workers' councils and cooperatives. As an economic system, socialism is often characterized by state, cooperative, or worker ownership of the means of production, goals which have been attributed to, and claimed by, a number of political parties and governments.
Alexander Solzhenitsyn, in From Under The Rubble, traces the history of socialism and concludes by saying that since it is a fact and not an opinion that socialism has failed every single time it has been tried in history, he poses the question, “Why, then, would anyone want to be a socialist?” His answer: Because “there is an organic unity between socialism and evil.”
How so? Was Jesus evil? Those who believe in the doctrine of the Trinity believe that Christ was the I AM who appeared to Moses and gave him the Law of God. Socialism breaks some of the Ten Commandments. “Thou shalt not steal.” “You shall not be partial to the poor or to the rich.” Since socialism depends on class envy, it thrives on covetousness. “Thou shalt not covet.” Since the state pretends to be the savior, “Thou shalt have no other gods before Me.”
Augustus Caesar said, “There is no other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved but the name Caesar.” The state is the beast, Caesar. Every religion except Christianity ends up worshipping the state as god and savior. “What shall we do with your King?” “We have no king but Caesar. Crucify him and give us Barrabas!” (Barrabas represents those who want to overthrow Caesar. He had killed a man in an insurrection. Liberation Theologians like Obama’s pastor Jeremiah Wright want to do the same.
When, at age 30, I returned from the mission field, changed careers, and was struggling in the transition to feed my wife and four daughters, we borrowed money to buy a used trailer for $3400. I had to work two jobs to barely make ends meet. Then I saw an ad for government assisted housing and called the realtor. The realtor asked how much I was making and, totaling both jobs, I told her. She said I did not qualify because I was making too much. She said I would qualify if I quit one of the jobs. I said, “You mean it would pay me to work only one job? Never mind. I’ll trust God and do it myself.”
Peter said, “There is no other name under heaven whereby we must be saved, but the name Jesus Christ” (Acts 4:12). He promises to prosper us if we keep the Covenant, work six days, and do not take on a “victim” mentality. To do otherwise is a tendency toward taking the mark of the beast (Caesar).
S
Some people think Jesus was (is) a socialist. Socialism favors state control of the economy and the re-distribution of wealth. In other words, “rob the rich to feed the poor.”
Socialism From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:
Socialism refers to any of various economic and political concepts of state or collective (i.e. public) ownership and administration of the means of production and distribution of goods and services, some of which have been developed into more or less highly articulated theories and/or praxis. In a Marxist or labor-movement definition of the term, socialism is a stage of society in Marxist theory transitional between capitalism and communism and distinguished by unequal distribution of goods and pay according to work done with the goal of creating a socio-economic system in which property and the distribution of wealth are subject to control by the community. This control may be exercised on behalf of the state, through a market, or through popular collectives such as workers' councils and cooperatives. As an economic system, socialism is often characterized by state, cooperative, or worker ownership of the means of production, goals which have been attributed to, and claimed by, a number of political parties and governments.
Alexander Solzhenitsyn, in From Under The Rubble, traces the history of socialism and concludes by saying that since it is a fact and not an opinion that socialism has failed every single time it has been tried in history, he poses the question, “Why, then, would anyone want to be a socialist?” His answer: Because “there is an organic unity between socialism and evil.”
How so? Was Jesus evil? Those who believe in the doctrine of the Trinity believe that Christ was the I AM who appeared to Moses and gave him the Law of God. Socialism breaks some of the Ten Commandments. “Thou shalt not steal.” “You shall not be partial to the poor or to the rich.” Since socialism depends on class envy, it thrives on covetousness. “Thou shalt not covet.” Since the state pretends to be the savior, “Thou shalt have no other gods before Me.”
Augustus Caesar said, “There is no other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved but the name Caesar.” The state is the beast, Caesar. Every religion except Christianity ends up worshipping the state as god and savior. “What shall we do with your King?” “We have no king but Caesar. Crucify him and give us Barrabas!” (Barrabas represents those who want to overthrow Caesar. He had killed a man in an insurrection. Liberation Theologians like Obama’s pastor Jeremiah Wright want to do the same.
When, at age 30, I returned from the mission field, changed careers, and was struggling in the transition to feed my wife and four daughters, we borrowed money to buy a used trailer for $3400. I had to work two jobs to barely make ends meet. Then I saw an ad for government assisted housing and called the realtor. The realtor asked how much I was making and, totaling both jobs, I told her. She said I did not qualify because I was making too much. She said I would qualify if I quit one of the jobs. I said, “You mean it would pay me to work only one job? Never mind. I’ll trust God and do it myself.”
Peter said, “There is no other name under heaven whereby we must be saved, but the name Jesus Christ” (Acts 4:12). He promises to prosper us if we keep the Covenant, work six days, and do not take on a “victim” mentality. To do otherwise is a tendency toward taking the mark of the beast (Caesar).
S
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Mark of the Beast
The Mark
Of The Beast
By Ron Smith
Revelation 13
1 And the dragon stood on the shore of the sea.
The Beast out of the Sea
And I saw a beast coming out of the sea. He had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on his horns, and on each head a blasphemous name.
Commentary: This beast is Rome. The seven heads are seven Caesars: Julius, Augustus, Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius, Nero, & Galba. The ten horns are the ten provinces of Rome. Each province had a king like Herod who was under the authority of Caesar. Revelation 17 describes the seven heads as seven kings. He said five had fallen and “one is.” Nero was the 6th and therefore this was written during the reign of Nero.
2 The beast I saw resembled a leopard, but had feet like those of a bear and a mouth like that of a lion. The dragon gave the beast his power and his throne and great authority. 3 One of the heads of the beast seemed to have had a fatal wound, but the fatal wound had been healed. The whole world was astonished and followed the beast.
Commentary: The head that was wounded was Julius. The senators killed him in order to destroy the dictatorship of empiricism. They thought they had killed it, but it arose in more power than ever with Augustus. All the world wondered at what Augustus had done when he brought about world peace. He said, “There is no other name in heaven whereby we must be saved, but the name Caesar.”
4 Men worshiped the dragon because he had given authority to the beast, and they also worshiped the beast and asked, "Who is like the beast? Who can make war against him?" 5 The beast was given a mouth to utter proud words and blasphemies and to exercise his authority for forty-two months.
Commentary: Nero persecuted the Christians for 42 months from AD 64 to AD 68. Peter and Paul were killed at this time.
6 He opened his mouth to blaspheme God, and to slander his name and his dwelling place and those who live in heaven. 7 He was given power to make war against the saints and to conquer them. And he was given authority over every tribe, people, language and nation. 8 All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast—all whose names have not been written in the book of life belonging to the Lamb that was slain from the creation of the world. 9 He who has an ear, let him hear. 10 If anyone is to go into captivity, into captivity he will go. If anyone is to be killed with the sword, with the sword he will be killed.
Commentary: Nero was killed with the sword in AD 68.
This calls for patient endurance and faithfulness on the part of the saints.
The Beast out of the Earth
11Then I saw another beast, coming out of the earth. He had two horns like a lamb, but he spoke like a dragon. 12He exercised all the authority of the first beast on his behalf, and made the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose fatal wound had been healed. 13And he performed great and miraculous signs, even causing fire to come down from heaven to earth in full view of men. 14 Because of the signs he was given power to do on behalf of the first beast, he deceived the inhabitants of the earth. He ordered them to set up an image in honor of the beast who was wounded by the sword and yet lived. 15 He was given power to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that it could speak and cause all who refused to worship the image to be killed.
Commentary: Giving “breath” to the image means causing the rule of Caesar to be effective. The image set up was a mental image. The signs produced could mean all the prosperity Herod brought to his reign. The fire could mean all his murders.
16 He also forced everyone, small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on his right hand or on his forehead, 17 so that no one could buy or sell unless he had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of his name. 18 This calls for wisdom. If anyone has insight, let him calculate the number of the beast, for it is man's number. His number is 666.
Who Are These Beasts?
The first beast rises out of the sea and is international in government. (The waters which you saw, where the harlot sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations, and tongues - Rev 17:15) The second beast rises out of the land and is local. The first beast in Revelation 13 is the same as the 4th beast in Daniel seven. It is the dynasty of Julius Caesar.
The second beast arises out of the Promised Land. It is Jerusalem. This beast looks like a lamb. Lambs have to do with priesthood sacrifice. It represents the chief priests of Jerusalem. It has two horns. Horns are symbols of power. This beast is schizophrenic because one horn says, “We have no king but Caesar,” and the other says, “Give us Barrabas” (who wanted to overthrow Caesar in an insurrection). It then speaks like a dragon and says, “Crucify Him.” The function of this second beast is to make the whole world worship the mental image of the first beast (Caesar). Nero was the current ruling Caesar and was the beast in the flesh. The letters of his name in Hebrew add up to 666. (Every letter in Hebrew is also a number.) This second beast is later called the false prophet in Revelation 20 and the harlot supported by the beast in Revelation 17. Caesar supported the apostate Jerusalem. That is why she is called the “Whore of Babylon.”
The Book of Revelation arises in a crescendo of heavenly rejoicing when she is destroyed in chapter 19. Then follows the marriage supper of the Lamb. The clue as to the identity of the Whore of Babylon is when it says, “And in her was found the blood of prophets and saints, and of all who were slain on the earth” (Rev 18:24). Jesus also described Jerusalem similarly. “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets” (Mat 23:37). No other city in history up to that point could be described this way. Neither Babylon, nor Egypt, nor Nineveh, nor any other city was famous for killing prophets.
To take the mark of the beast is to do what the chief priests of the Jews were doing. They said, “We have no king but Caesar; give us Barrabas and crucify Him.” To take the mark of the beast is to put Caesar (the government) as the highest authority. Those who take this mark believe that if the Supreme Court says it is okay, then it is. That is the same as saying, “We have no king but Caesar.”
What Does It Mean In Apocalyptic Language
To “Buy And Sell?”
In Revelation 3:13 Jesus said, “I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire.”
How does one buy gold from Jesus? Is it not by worshipping Him in Spirit and in truth? This shows that in Holy Spirit vision language, “buying and selling” is worship. The Spirit says in Revelation 13:16 that no one could buy or sell without the mark of the beast on their forehead and on their hand. This means they could not “worship” in the synagogue.
Put Out of the Synagogue
John 9:22b …the Jews had decided that anyone who acknowledged that Jesus was the Christ would be put out of the synagogue.
The Mark
Dt 11:18 Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads.
Just as Stephen called God’s Tabernacle the “tabernacle of Moloch” because of their wrong motive in worship, so here the Spirit is calling the God ordained custom of tying the words of God on their hands and foreheads the “mark of the beast.”
In Acts 7:42-44 Stephen said, “Then God turned and gave them up to worship the host of heaven, as it is written in the book of the Prophets:
‘Did you offer Me slaughtered animals and sacrifices during forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel? You also took up the tabernacle of Moloch, And the star of your god Remphan, Images which you made to worship; And I will carry you away beyond Babylon.’ Our fathers had the tabernacle of witness in the wilderness, as He appointed…”
Malachi 2:3 says the “refuse of your solemn feasts” will be rubbed on your faces. Isaiah 1:14 says, “Your New Moon festivals and your appointed feasts my soul hates. They have become a burden to me.” The very festivals God had ordained had become a burden to God because of their wrong motive in worship.
How Do We Apply This Today?
How do we apply this? It means that the very duties God has ordained can become sinful because of performing them from a wrong motive and going about to establish our own righteousness. Just as the Pharisees trusted in their fasting, tithing, and Sabbath keeping and left out mercy and justice, so Christians today can trust in their witnessing, their giving, their praying, their worship, their building of hospitals, helping the poor, fighting abortion, church attendance, and many other legitimate duties.
What the hypocrites of that day did is no different from what professing Christians can do now. One “mark” of this beast is when one thinks he has done his duty and must be careful of not going too far in our dedication and giving. Anyone who thinks that way is marked. Anyone who wants credit for all his giving and all his sacrifice has marked himself. We are also told to “mark” those who cause dissension and divisions (Rom 16:17).
Jesus said to go and learn what Hosea 6:6 means:
For I desire mercy and not sacrifice,
And the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.
It means He desires substance over symbol.
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Of The Beast
By Ron Smith
Revelation 13
1 And the dragon stood on the shore of the sea.
The Beast out of the Sea
And I saw a beast coming out of the sea. He had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on his horns, and on each head a blasphemous name.
Commentary: This beast is Rome. The seven heads are seven Caesars: Julius, Augustus, Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius, Nero, & Galba. The ten horns are the ten provinces of Rome. Each province had a king like Herod who was under the authority of Caesar. Revelation 17 describes the seven heads as seven kings. He said five had fallen and “one is.” Nero was the 6th and therefore this was written during the reign of Nero.
2 The beast I saw resembled a leopard, but had feet like those of a bear and a mouth like that of a lion. The dragon gave the beast his power and his throne and great authority. 3 One of the heads of the beast seemed to have had a fatal wound, but the fatal wound had been healed. The whole world was astonished and followed the beast.
Commentary: The head that was wounded was Julius. The senators killed him in order to destroy the dictatorship of empiricism. They thought they had killed it, but it arose in more power than ever with Augustus. All the world wondered at what Augustus had done when he brought about world peace. He said, “There is no other name in heaven whereby we must be saved, but the name Caesar.”
4 Men worshiped the dragon because he had given authority to the beast, and they also worshiped the beast and asked, "Who is like the beast? Who can make war against him?" 5 The beast was given a mouth to utter proud words and blasphemies and to exercise his authority for forty-two months.
Commentary: Nero persecuted the Christians for 42 months from AD 64 to AD 68. Peter and Paul were killed at this time.
6 He opened his mouth to blaspheme God, and to slander his name and his dwelling place and those who live in heaven. 7 He was given power to make war against the saints and to conquer them. And he was given authority over every tribe, people, language and nation. 8 All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast—all whose names have not been written in the book of life belonging to the Lamb that was slain from the creation of the world. 9 He who has an ear, let him hear. 10 If anyone is to go into captivity, into captivity he will go. If anyone is to be killed with the sword, with the sword he will be killed.
Commentary: Nero was killed with the sword in AD 68.
This calls for patient endurance and faithfulness on the part of the saints.
The Beast out of the Earth
11Then I saw another beast, coming out of the earth. He had two horns like a lamb, but he spoke like a dragon. 12He exercised all the authority of the first beast on his behalf, and made the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose fatal wound had been healed. 13And he performed great and miraculous signs, even causing fire to come down from heaven to earth in full view of men. 14 Because of the signs he was given power to do on behalf of the first beast, he deceived the inhabitants of the earth. He ordered them to set up an image in honor of the beast who was wounded by the sword and yet lived. 15 He was given power to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that it could speak and cause all who refused to worship the image to be killed.
Commentary: Giving “breath” to the image means causing the rule of Caesar to be effective. The image set up was a mental image. The signs produced could mean all the prosperity Herod brought to his reign. The fire could mean all his murders.
16 He also forced everyone, small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on his right hand or on his forehead, 17 so that no one could buy or sell unless he had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of his name. 18 This calls for wisdom. If anyone has insight, let him calculate the number of the beast, for it is man's number. His number is 666.
Who Are These Beasts?
The first beast rises out of the sea and is international in government. (The waters which you saw, where the harlot sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations, and tongues - Rev 17:15) The second beast rises out of the land and is local. The first beast in Revelation 13 is the same as the 4th beast in Daniel seven. It is the dynasty of Julius Caesar.
The second beast arises out of the Promised Land. It is Jerusalem. This beast looks like a lamb. Lambs have to do with priesthood sacrifice. It represents the chief priests of Jerusalem. It has two horns. Horns are symbols of power. This beast is schizophrenic because one horn says, “We have no king but Caesar,” and the other says, “Give us Barrabas” (who wanted to overthrow Caesar in an insurrection). It then speaks like a dragon and says, “Crucify Him.” The function of this second beast is to make the whole world worship the mental image of the first beast (Caesar). Nero was the current ruling Caesar and was the beast in the flesh. The letters of his name in Hebrew add up to 666. (Every letter in Hebrew is also a number.) This second beast is later called the false prophet in Revelation 20 and the harlot supported by the beast in Revelation 17. Caesar supported the apostate Jerusalem. That is why she is called the “Whore of Babylon.”
The Book of Revelation arises in a crescendo of heavenly rejoicing when she is destroyed in chapter 19. Then follows the marriage supper of the Lamb. The clue as to the identity of the Whore of Babylon is when it says, “And in her was found the blood of prophets and saints, and of all who were slain on the earth” (Rev 18:24). Jesus also described Jerusalem similarly. “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets” (Mat 23:37). No other city in history up to that point could be described this way. Neither Babylon, nor Egypt, nor Nineveh, nor any other city was famous for killing prophets.
To take the mark of the beast is to do what the chief priests of the Jews were doing. They said, “We have no king but Caesar; give us Barrabas and crucify Him.” To take the mark of the beast is to put Caesar (the government) as the highest authority. Those who take this mark believe that if the Supreme Court says it is okay, then it is. That is the same as saying, “We have no king but Caesar.”
What Does It Mean In Apocalyptic Language
To “Buy And Sell?”
In Revelation 3:13 Jesus said, “I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire.”
How does one buy gold from Jesus? Is it not by worshipping Him in Spirit and in truth? This shows that in Holy Spirit vision language, “buying and selling” is worship. The Spirit says in Revelation 13:16 that no one could buy or sell without the mark of the beast on their forehead and on their hand. This means they could not “worship” in the synagogue.
Put Out of the Synagogue
John 9:22b …the Jews had decided that anyone who acknowledged that Jesus was the Christ would be put out of the synagogue.
The Mark
Dt 11:18 Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads.
Just as Stephen called God’s Tabernacle the “tabernacle of Moloch” because of their wrong motive in worship, so here the Spirit is calling the God ordained custom of tying the words of God on their hands and foreheads the “mark of the beast.”
In Acts 7:42-44 Stephen said, “Then God turned and gave them up to worship the host of heaven, as it is written in the book of the Prophets:
‘Did you offer Me slaughtered animals and sacrifices during forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel? You also took up the tabernacle of Moloch, And the star of your god Remphan, Images which you made to worship; And I will carry you away beyond Babylon.’ Our fathers had the tabernacle of witness in the wilderness, as He appointed…”
Malachi 2:3 says the “refuse of your solemn feasts” will be rubbed on your faces. Isaiah 1:14 says, “Your New Moon festivals and your appointed feasts my soul hates. They have become a burden to me.” The very festivals God had ordained had become a burden to God because of their wrong motive in worship.
How Do We Apply This Today?
How do we apply this? It means that the very duties God has ordained can become sinful because of performing them from a wrong motive and going about to establish our own righteousness. Just as the Pharisees trusted in their fasting, tithing, and Sabbath keeping and left out mercy and justice, so Christians today can trust in their witnessing, their giving, their praying, their worship, their building of hospitals, helping the poor, fighting abortion, church attendance, and many other legitimate duties.
What the hypocrites of that day did is no different from what professing Christians can do now. One “mark” of this beast is when one thinks he has done his duty and must be careful of not going too far in our dedication and giving. Anyone who thinks that way is marked. Anyone who wants credit for all his giving and all his sacrifice has marked himself. We are also told to “mark” those who cause dissension and divisions (Rom 16:17).
Jesus said to go and learn what Hosea 6:6 means:
For I desire mercy and not sacrifice,
And the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.
It means He desires substance over symbol.
Books & Tracts By Ron Smith
2411 Mimosa, Mission, TX 78574
956-585-4402
scronnie@aol.com
churchofthekingmcallen.com
BOOKS
The Visions of Daniel Fulfilled $15 +shipping @ amazon.com or $10 + shipping from Ron Smith direct only.
Apostolic Interpretation $10 + shipping (direct only)
Tracts (Free)
Beware of Dogs
Faith v. Works
Is Jesus Coming Soon?
ISLAM
Jehova’s Two Wives
Jehova’s Two Wives
Marks of a True Convert
Once Saved
Once Saved Always
One Holy Catholic Church
Richard Cameron
SIGNIFICANCE.
Stoddard Way to Know Sincerity and Hypocrisy Cleared Up
Stoddard, Defects of Preachers Reproved
The Coming Of Christ In Mat 24
THE FIVE CONSTITUTIONS OF THE HEART
The King is Coming tract
The Love Song of Moses and the Lamb
The Many Comings of the Lord
The New heavens & earth
Thy Kingdom Come tract
TRUE AND FALSE CONVERSION
True And False Conversion
What We Must Understand to be Saved
Spanish Tracts
LosDefectosdelosPredicadores
Bautismo
Religión Por Afuera Y Por Adentro
Defectos De Los Predicadores, por Solomon Stoddard
Church of the King
7401 N. Ware Rd.
McAllen, TX 78574
Churchofthekingmcallen.com
On Ware Rd. Just South of Trenton ½ mile.
Monday, July 14, 2008
One Holy Catholic & Apostolic Church
One Holy Catholic And Apostolic Church
By Ron Smith
One Holy Catholic Church
Every Sunday Christians recite the Apostles’ Creed. “I believe in the holy catholic church.” Each of the doctrines found in the creed can be traced to statements current in the New Testament period. The oldest copy of the creed is perhaps the Interrogatory Creed of Hippolytus (A.D. 215). The word catholic simply means universal. It has to do with the unity of all Christians regardless of their respective denominations. We are all unified by our pledge to the essential doctrines as stated in this creed. What we believe in our hearts, we confess with our mouths. All Christians everywhere confess these doctrines. To deny the Apostles’ Creed is to deny Christ.
The Apostle’s Creed
I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, God's only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come again to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. AMEN.
The Church’s Authority
Jesus said, “And if he refuses to hear them, tell it to the church. But if he refuses even to hear the church, let him be to you like a heathen and a tax collector. Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven (Mat 18:17-18).
To bind means to “make binding” as in a binding agreement.
In view of all this, we are making a binding agreement, putting it in writing, and our leaders, our Levites and our priests are affixing their seals to it (Nehemiah 9:38).
What makes the historical creeds such as the Apostles’ Creed and the Nicene Creed binding in heaven, is the unified agreement of all the churches in the world. The argument of the Church of Armenia (the first Christian nation state in history), is that after the council of Chalcedon (451 AD) the churches were divided, and therefore all the councils after that are not universally binding. The Armenian Church and the Coptic churches separated from the others at that time.
The Nicene Creed was agreed on in 381 AD as a result of the Council of Nicea in 325 AD. This creed was agreed on by all the churches as a result of the controversy on the doctrine of the Trinity. The Arians denied the deity of Christ. They said He was a created being, and was the Son of God but not God. The Nicene Creed says, “We believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible. And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds (æons), Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father…”
Jesus said that what the church binds on earth is bound in heaven. This defines what a Christian is. To deny this teaching of the Trinity is to be “a heathen and a tax collector.” One who denies the doctrines of these creeds is therefore not a Christian.
The Essentials Of The Faith
St. Augustine said, “In essentials – unity; in non-essentials – liberty; in all things – charity.” The essential doctrines are found in the Apostles’ Creed and the Nicene Creed because they are a binding agreement. This means we are forbidden to divide over non-essential doctrines and required to divide if we are not agreed on the essentials. But in all things there must be charity. That means no “name calling” and personal attacks. We are to be objective and not subjective in our debates over non-essential doctrines. Those who run out of reasonable arguments many times resort to name calling and personal acidity.
This does not mean that non-essential doctrines are not important. It just means we have no right to reject each other as non-Christian if we do not agree. There should be liberty to debate the non-essential issues charitably. I have been called the Antichrist by uneducated pastors in Mexico because I reject the teaching of a secret rapture and a soon coming of Christ. The universal churches have never agreed on such non-essentials as the interpretation of prophecy.
The Scriptures
The doctrines on which the universal church agreed were based on the Bible. The early church agreed on the books that were included in the New Testament. Therefore, those who reject the authority of the Bible are not Christians. Eusebius (324 AD), the first church historian, explains the criteria for acceptance. The book had to be written by an apostle or by the companion of an apostle. It also had to be received and read by the universal churches. Those books that did not agree with the essentials (the Gnostic gospels) were rejected as antichrist. Jesus said to His apostles, “As the Father has sent Me, so I send you” (John 20:21). To reject the authority of the apostles and prophets (the Bible) is to reject Christ. To invent a new Christ other than the Scriptural one, is to violate the second commandment (No images; including mental ones).
The church is built on the foundation of the apostles and the Old Testament prophets (Eph 2:20). The Bible is the word of the church and the universal church made it binding both in heaven and on earth because Jesus said so (Mat 18:17-18). Paul said the church is the “pillar and foundation of the truth” (1 Tim 3:15). This does not mean the “Roman Church” or the “Baptist Church” or any other denomination. It means the original historical church of the historical creeds that were bound by the united churches.
If the church is the foundation of the truth, and the Bible is the word of the church as spoken by the prophets and apostles, and Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, then we must conclude that any teaching that does not agree with the essential doctrines of the church is “another Gospel” and a false one. Jesus said, “No man comes to the Father but by Me” (John 14:6).
Jesus And The Prophets
Some attempt to pit Jesus against the Old Testament prophets. But Jesus said, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them” (Mat 5:17). Everything Jesus did and said was based on the Old Testament. He did not replace it; He fulfilled it. Fulfilling is not abolishing. When He said, “You have heard it has been said, ‘An eye for an eye’, but I say to you”… He was not contradicting Moses; He was contradicting the Pharisees’ method of interpretation. Jesus claimed to be the I AM who was before Abraham (John 8) and who appeared to Moses. Therefore, it was Christ Himself who gave the Law to Moses. Jesus does not replace the Old Testament prophets; He encompasses them. He is the one speaking through them.
In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe (Heb 1:1-2 NIV).
Since the Nicene Creed is binding, we must believe that Christ is God. God is one essence in three persons. God inspired the prophets and the apostles. Men are fallible, but God’s word spoken through them is infallible. They were only vessels of clay; but they contained an invaluable treasure (i.e. the word of God).
But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us (2 Cor 4:7).
All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness (2 Tim 3:16 NIV).
For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit (2 Pet 1:21 NIV).
Jesus evidently believed in the inspiration of Scripture because “beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself” (Luke 24:27 NIV). “The words of the prophets are in agreement with this…” (Acts 15:15 NIV).
What About Tradition?
You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to the traditions of men (Mark 7:8 NIV).
Traditions that replace God’s word are to be avoided. However, according to Scripture, traditions that do not contradict Scripture and that were handed down by the apostles should be observed. Paul commanded that the traditions that he had handed down be observed, whether they are oral or written.
Therefore, brethren, stand fast and hold the traditions which you were taught, whether by word or our epistle (2 Thess 2:15 KJV).
Church History
The history of both the Old Testament church and the New Testament church over the last 5000 years since Abraham has proven that men morally devolve instead of evolving. The second law of dynamics is proven. “All things left to themselves tend to deteriorate.” It is also called entropy. The Bible calls it the law of sin and death. It is a record of constant backsliding. Just look at the book of Judges, Kings, and Chronicles. Just look at church history. Denominations start out with the power of God and a generation or so later they deny the essentials of the faith and have a “name that they live and are dead” (Rev 3:1).
The only thing that can reverse death is the power of the resurrection. Christ reversed entropy in His resurrection. And “He must reign till He has put all His enemies under His feet; and the last enemy is death” (1 Cor 15:25-26).
Although history shows constant backsliding by God’s people, every now and then God visits His people in reformation and reverses the trend. This happened in the Exodus; it happened several times in Judges; it happened in the reformations of Hezekiah, Josiah, Ezra, John the Baptist, and Jesus. It happened in church history in the Reformation, the Great Awakenings, etc.
Based on this pattern of the past, we are to expect similar visitations in the future because Jesus said, “I will build my church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it (Mat 16:18).
Whatever is has already been,
and what will be has been before;
and God will call the past to account (Eccles 3:15 NIV).
By Ron Smith
One Holy Catholic Church
Every Sunday Christians recite the Apostles’ Creed. “I believe in the holy catholic church.” Each of the doctrines found in the creed can be traced to statements current in the New Testament period. The oldest copy of the creed is perhaps the Interrogatory Creed of Hippolytus (A.D. 215). The word catholic simply means universal. It has to do with the unity of all Christians regardless of their respective denominations. We are all unified by our pledge to the essential doctrines as stated in this creed. What we believe in our hearts, we confess with our mouths. All Christians everywhere confess these doctrines. To deny the Apostles’ Creed is to deny Christ.
The Apostle’s Creed
I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, God's only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come again to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. AMEN.
The Church’s Authority
Jesus said, “And if he refuses to hear them, tell it to the church. But if he refuses even to hear the church, let him be to you like a heathen and a tax collector. Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven (Mat 18:17-18).
To bind means to “make binding” as in a binding agreement.
In view of all this, we are making a binding agreement, putting it in writing, and our leaders, our Levites and our priests are affixing their seals to it (Nehemiah 9:38).
What makes the historical creeds such as the Apostles’ Creed and the Nicene Creed binding in heaven, is the unified agreement of all the churches in the world. The argument of the Church of Armenia (the first Christian nation state in history), is that after the council of Chalcedon (451 AD) the churches were divided, and therefore all the councils after that are not universally binding. The Armenian Church and the Coptic churches separated from the others at that time.
The Nicene Creed was agreed on in 381 AD as a result of the Council of Nicea in 325 AD. This creed was agreed on by all the churches as a result of the controversy on the doctrine of the Trinity. The Arians denied the deity of Christ. They said He was a created being, and was the Son of God but not God. The Nicene Creed says, “We believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible. And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds (æons), Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father…”
Jesus said that what the church binds on earth is bound in heaven. This defines what a Christian is. To deny this teaching of the Trinity is to be “a heathen and a tax collector.” One who denies the doctrines of these creeds is therefore not a Christian.
The Essentials Of The Faith
St. Augustine said, “In essentials – unity; in non-essentials – liberty; in all things – charity.” The essential doctrines are found in the Apostles’ Creed and the Nicene Creed because they are a binding agreement. This means we are forbidden to divide over non-essential doctrines and required to divide if we are not agreed on the essentials. But in all things there must be charity. That means no “name calling” and personal attacks. We are to be objective and not subjective in our debates over non-essential doctrines. Those who run out of reasonable arguments many times resort to name calling and personal acidity.
This does not mean that non-essential doctrines are not important. It just means we have no right to reject each other as non-Christian if we do not agree. There should be liberty to debate the non-essential issues charitably. I have been called the Antichrist by uneducated pastors in Mexico because I reject the teaching of a secret rapture and a soon coming of Christ. The universal churches have never agreed on such non-essentials as the interpretation of prophecy.
The Scriptures
The doctrines on which the universal church agreed were based on the Bible. The early church agreed on the books that were included in the New Testament. Therefore, those who reject the authority of the Bible are not Christians. Eusebius (324 AD), the first church historian, explains the criteria for acceptance. The book had to be written by an apostle or by the companion of an apostle. It also had to be received and read by the universal churches. Those books that did not agree with the essentials (the Gnostic gospels) were rejected as antichrist. Jesus said to His apostles, “As the Father has sent Me, so I send you” (John 20:21). To reject the authority of the apostles and prophets (the Bible) is to reject Christ. To invent a new Christ other than the Scriptural one, is to violate the second commandment (No images; including mental ones).
The church is built on the foundation of the apostles and the Old Testament prophets (Eph 2:20). The Bible is the word of the church and the universal church made it binding both in heaven and on earth because Jesus said so (Mat 18:17-18). Paul said the church is the “pillar and foundation of the truth” (1 Tim 3:15). This does not mean the “Roman Church” or the “Baptist Church” or any other denomination. It means the original historical church of the historical creeds that were bound by the united churches.
If the church is the foundation of the truth, and the Bible is the word of the church as spoken by the prophets and apostles, and Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, then we must conclude that any teaching that does not agree with the essential doctrines of the church is “another Gospel” and a false one. Jesus said, “No man comes to the Father but by Me” (John 14:6).
Jesus And The Prophets
Some attempt to pit Jesus against the Old Testament prophets. But Jesus said, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them” (Mat 5:17). Everything Jesus did and said was based on the Old Testament. He did not replace it; He fulfilled it. Fulfilling is not abolishing. When He said, “You have heard it has been said, ‘An eye for an eye’, but I say to you”… He was not contradicting Moses; He was contradicting the Pharisees’ method of interpretation. Jesus claimed to be the I AM who was before Abraham (John 8) and who appeared to Moses. Therefore, it was Christ Himself who gave the Law to Moses. Jesus does not replace the Old Testament prophets; He encompasses them. He is the one speaking through them.
In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe (Heb 1:1-2 NIV).
Since the Nicene Creed is binding, we must believe that Christ is God. God is one essence in three persons. God inspired the prophets and the apostles. Men are fallible, but God’s word spoken through them is infallible. They were only vessels of clay; but they contained an invaluable treasure (i.e. the word of God).
But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us (2 Cor 4:7).
All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness (2 Tim 3:16 NIV).
For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit (2 Pet 1:21 NIV).
Jesus evidently believed in the inspiration of Scripture because “beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself” (Luke 24:27 NIV). “The words of the prophets are in agreement with this…” (Acts 15:15 NIV).
What About Tradition?
You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to the traditions of men (Mark 7:8 NIV).
Traditions that replace God’s word are to be avoided. However, according to Scripture, traditions that do not contradict Scripture and that were handed down by the apostles should be observed. Paul commanded that the traditions that he had handed down be observed, whether they are oral or written.
Therefore, brethren, stand fast and hold the traditions which you were taught, whether by word or our epistle (2 Thess 2:15 KJV).
Church History
The history of both the Old Testament church and the New Testament church over the last 5000 years since Abraham has proven that men morally devolve instead of evolving. The second law of dynamics is proven. “All things left to themselves tend to deteriorate.” It is also called entropy. The Bible calls it the law of sin and death. It is a record of constant backsliding. Just look at the book of Judges, Kings, and Chronicles. Just look at church history. Denominations start out with the power of God and a generation or so later they deny the essentials of the faith and have a “name that they live and are dead” (Rev 3:1).
The only thing that can reverse death is the power of the resurrection. Christ reversed entropy in His resurrection. And “He must reign till He has put all His enemies under His feet; and the last enemy is death” (1 Cor 15:25-26).
Although history shows constant backsliding by God’s people, every now and then God visits His people in reformation and reverses the trend. This happened in the Exodus; it happened several times in Judges; it happened in the reformations of Hezekiah, Josiah, Ezra, John the Baptist, and Jesus. It happened in church history in the Reformation, the Great Awakenings, etc.
Based on this pattern of the past, we are to expect similar visitations in the future because Jesus said, “I will build my church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it (Mat 16:18).
Whatever is has already been,
and what will be has been before;
and God will call the past to account (Eccles 3:15 NIV).
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Significance
SIGNIFICANCE
Would you rather be useful or significant? God created all things to be useful. Only God has significance. We learned this in philosophy class at the seminary.
A chair does not have significance. It signifies that it is useful for something. No created thing has significance. Only God does. When man wants to be significant instead of useful, he makes him self a god. “God knows that when you eat of the tree you will be like God.” Marlon Brando said, “I could’a been somebody. I could’a been a contendah.” He wanted to be significant… like God.
Absolutizing:
There are many aspects of life and many aspects to the body of Christ. Some are ears, some are hands, some are feet, etc. The ear cannot say to the foot, “You should be like me.” That is absolutizing one aspect of the body. When man wants to be significant instead of useful, he tends to absolutize his particular aspect of life.
EXAMPLE: I knew a man that thrived on witnessing door to door. The church doubled in attendance from 200 to 400 in one year due to his efforts. But he thought everyone should be like him, and if you were not, well, you were just not right with God. He felt significant. He felt that he was an important “somebody.” That is called pride. God will reject that offering just as he rejected Cain’s.
ESSENTIALS, ETC.
St. Augustine said, “In essentials – unity; in non-essentials – liberty; in all things charity.” The essentials of the Christian faith are found in the doctrines listed in the Apostles’ Creed and the Nicene Creed. We must all agree that the Bible is God’s infallible word and that Christ is the only way of salvation. Scripture demands that we divide when we do not agree on the essentials of the faith. We are told to “note those who cause divisions and offenses, contrary to the doctrine which you learned, and avoid them” (Rom 16:17). We cannot be one with those, for example, who deny the doctrine of the Trinity.
The Scripture also demands that we do not divide over the non-essentials. That is petty, divisive, and factious. The Scriptures say a lot about this subject.
1Cor 1:10 Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.
1Cor 3:3 for you are still carnal. For where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and behaving like mere men?
1Cor 11:19 For there must also be factions among you, that those who are approved may be recognized among you.
Jude 1:19 These are sensual persons, who cause divisions, not having the Spirit.
Galatians lists dissension as one of the works of the flesh (5:19-20).
James 3:14 But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth. 15 This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic. 16 For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there. 17 But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy.
When we started this church we believed we had a unique message based on the historical church. I hope we did not leave the impression that everyone has to be like us or they are just not right with God. That would be an effort to be significant; that would be absolutizing one aspect of what God is doing in the world. I hope our motive is not to be significant, but rather to be useful.
It is said that Presbyterians divide over non-essential doctrines and that Baptists divide over the color of the carpet.
We do not require that all our members agree on every point of what we teach; we just require that we agree on the essentials. To do otherwise would be an attempt to be significant, and that would be an attempt to “be like God knowing good and evil” (Gen 3:5).
That does not mean that non-essentials are not important. It just means we have no right to divide over them. We can each try with all our might to persuade one another of our convictions on non-essentials, but please let us not think that each is a devil for not agreeing. Let us never take the position that our interpretation of non-essentials is as infallible as the Scripture.
Would you rather be useful or significant? God created all things to be useful. Only God has significance. We learned this in philosophy class at the seminary.
A chair does not have significance. It signifies that it is useful for something. No created thing has significance. Only God does. When man wants to be significant instead of useful, he makes him self a god. “God knows that when you eat of the tree you will be like God.” Marlon Brando said, “I could’a been somebody. I could’a been a contendah.” He wanted to be significant… like God.
Absolutizing:
There are many aspects of life and many aspects to the body of Christ. Some are ears, some are hands, some are feet, etc. The ear cannot say to the foot, “You should be like me.” That is absolutizing one aspect of the body. When man wants to be significant instead of useful, he tends to absolutize his particular aspect of life.
EXAMPLE: I knew a man that thrived on witnessing door to door. The church doubled in attendance from 200 to 400 in one year due to his efforts. But he thought everyone should be like him, and if you were not, well, you were just not right with God. He felt significant. He felt that he was an important “somebody.” That is called pride. God will reject that offering just as he rejected Cain’s.
ESSENTIALS, ETC.
St. Augustine said, “In essentials – unity; in non-essentials – liberty; in all things charity.” The essentials of the Christian faith are found in the doctrines listed in the Apostles’ Creed and the Nicene Creed. We must all agree that the Bible is God’s infallible word and that Christ is the only way of salvation. Scripture demands that we divide when we do not agree on the essentials of the faith. We are told to “note those who cause divisions and offenses, contrary to the doctrine which you learned, and avoid them” (Rom 16:17). We cannot be one with those, for example, who deny the doctrine of the Trinity.
The Scripture also demands that we do not divide over the non-essentials. That is petty, divisive, and factious. The Scriptures say a lot about this subject.
1Cor 1:10 Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.
1Cor 3:3 for you are still carnal. For where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and behaving like mere men?
1Cor 11:19 For there must also be factions among you, that those who are approved may be recognized among you.
Jude 1:19 These are sensual persons, who cause divisions, not having the Spirit.
Galatians lists dissension as one of the works of the flesh (5:19-20).
James 3:14 But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth. 15 This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic. 16 For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there. 17 But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy.
When we started this church we believed we had a unique message based on the historical church. I hope we did not leave the impression that everyone has to be like us or they are just not right with God. That would be an effort to be significant; that would be absolutizing one aspect of what God is doing in the world. I hope our motive is not to be significant, but rather to be useful.
It is said that Presbyterians divide over non-essential doctrines and that Baptists divide over the color of the carpet.
We do not require that all our members agree on every point of what we teach; we just require that we agree on the essentials. To do otherwise would be an attempt to be significant, and that would be an attempt to “be like God knowing good and evil” (Gen 3:5).
That does not mean that non-essentials are not important. It just means we have no right to divide over them. We can each try with all our might to persuade one another of our convictions on non-essentials, but please let us not think that each is a devil for not agreeing. Let us never take the position that our interpretation of non-essentials is as infallible as the Scripture.
Monday, January 21, 2008
Already And Not Yet
Already/Not Yet
The scripture gives many examples of prophecies that were fulfilled already and also not yet. Below are some that are quoted in the New Testament.
Mat 1:22 So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: 23 “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.”
Matthew is quoting Isaiah 7:14. But in the context, Isaiah was talking about a sign for Ahaz. Isaiah was talking about his own son but the Holy Spirit was also speaking of Christ. Thus we see the apostolic method of interpretation. Isaiah’s prophecy was fulfilled already for Ahaz, but not yet for Mary. Isaiah meant it for Ahaz, but the Holy Spirit meant it for both.
Isa 7:14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
Isa 8:18 Here am I and the children whom the LORD has given me! We are for signs and wonders in Israel From the LORD of hosts.
Mat 2:14 When he arose, he took the young Child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt, 15 and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, “Out of Egypt I called My Son.”
Matthew is here quoting Hosea 11:1. Hosea is referring to Israel as God’s son. But we see from this that the true Israelite is Christ. We also see this in Isaiah where Israel is called the servant of the Lord (Isa. 41:8). The context in Isaiah continues to chapter 53 that describes the servant’s suffering for our transgressions. The Jews say that chapter does not refer to Christ, but to Israel. True. But the only true Israelite is Christ. He is the Good Olive Tree. But in the context of Hosea, it is referring to the nation of Israel. So here again we see a double application.
Hos 11:1 When Israel was a child, I loved him, And out of Egypt I called My son. 2 As they called them, So they went from them; They sacrificed to the Baals, And burned incense to carved images.
Mat 2:17 Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying: 18 “A voice was heard in Ramah, Lamentation, weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, Refusing to be comforted, Because they are no more.”
Clark’s Commentary says -
A voice was heard in Ramah] The Ramah mentioned here, (for there were several towns of this name,) was situated in the tribe of Benjamin, about six or seven miles from Jerusalem. Near this place Rachel was buried; who is here, in a beautiful figure of poetry, represented as coming out of her grave, and lamenting bitterly for the loss of her children, none of whom presented themselves to her view, all being slain or gone into exile. St. Matthew, who is ever fond of accommodation, applies these words, Mt 2:17, 18, to the massacre of the children at Bethlehem. That is, they were suitable to that occasion, and therefore he so applied them; but they are not a prediction of that event.
Mat 2:23 And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, “He shall be called a Nazarene.”
Which one of the prophets is Matthew quoting here? There is only one place these words are found in the Old Testament.
Jud 13:5 For behold, you shall conceive and bear a son. And no razor shall come upon his head, for the child shall be a Nazirite to God from the womb; and he shall begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the Philistines.”
It appears that the apostolic method of interpretation sees Samson as a type of Christ. The word to Samson’s mother was fulfilled in Samson already, but not yet in Christ. Jesus is the Greater Samson.
1Co 10:11 Now all these things [written in the Old Testament] happened to them as examples [Gr tupos], and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come.
We see this same principal in the covenant with David. The prophet Nathan promised four things, but Gabriel, to Mary, reversed the order of the four items. Observe the following. The New Testament substance is mirrored by Old Testament types just as the objects in a mirror are reversed.
Promise To David
1. Kingdom
2. House
3. Throne
4. God’s Son
The Type
2 Samuel 7:12 “When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 “He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 “I will be his Father, and he shall be My son.”
Promise To Mary
Son of God
Throne of David
House of Jacob
His kingdom
The Fulfillment
Luke 1:31 “And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus. 32 “He will be great and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. 33 “And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.”
This is a good example of how the prophecy to David had a double meaning. It was fulfilled in Solomon “already,” but not yet until the Greater Solomon came. Jesus said, “a greater than Solomon is here” (Luke 11:31).
Mat 4:13 And leaving Nazareth, He came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the regions of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14 that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: 15 “The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, By the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles: 16 The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, And upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death Light has dawned.”
John Gill says, “Christ's dwelling in Capernaum accomplished a prophecy of the prophet (Isa 9:1,2) and he went and dwelt there, that it might be fulfilled which he had spoken: the meaning of which prophecy is, that as those parts of the land of Israel, there mentioned, had suffered much by Tiglathpileser, who had carried them captive…”
Isa 9:1 Nevertheless the gloom will not be upon her who is distressed, As when at first He lightly esteemed The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, And afterward more heavily oppressed her, By the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, In Galilee of the Gentiles. 2 The people who walked in darkness Have seen a great light; Those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, Upon them a light has shined.
Mt 8:17 that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: “He Himself took our infirmities And bore our sicknesses.”
Here again, the prophecy from Isaiah 53 was fulfilled by Israel as the “Suffering Servant” already, but not yet as the Greater “True” Israelite at the cross.
The following is from How To Read The Bible For All Its Worth, by Gordon Fee and Douglas Stuart (Zondervan), which is highly recommended. The quotation concerns prophecy and second meanings:
At a number of places in the New Testament, reference is made to Old Testament passages that do not appear to refer to what the New Testament says they do. That is, these passages seem to have clear meaning in their original Old Testament setting and yet are used in connection with a different meaning by a New Testament writer.
As an example, consider the two stories of how Moses and the Israelites were miraculously given water from rocks in the wilderness: once at Rephidim (Exo 17:1-7) and once at Kadesh (Num 20:1-13). The stories are, it appears, simple enough and abundantly clear in their original contexts. But in 1Corinthians 10:4, Paul seems to identify the experience of the Israelites as an encounter with Christ. He says that "they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ." In each Old Testament story there is no hint that the rock is anything other than a rock. Paul gives the rock a second meaning, identifying it as "Christ." This second meaning is commonly called the sensus plenior (fuller meaning).
Upon reflection, one can see that Paul is drawing an analogy. He is saying, in effect, "That rock was to them as Christ is to us a source of sustenance in the same way that spiritual things are a sustenance for us." Paul's language in verses 2-4 is highly metaphorical. He wants the Corinthians to understand that the experience of the Israelites in the wilderness can be understood as an allegory of their own experience with Christ, especially at the Lord's Table.
The author enthusiastically agrees with this. But then Fee and Stuart go on to say that modern writers are not authorized to do what Paul did. With all due respect, I beg to differ. The very fact that Paul and the other apostles left us the pattern of how to interpret the Old Testament should authorize the church to follow their example. After all, are we not commanded to not be like the horse and mule that need a bridle to guide them? (Psalm 32:9) I do not believe the apostles took the Old Testament words out of their original context and assigned a whole new meaning. I believe they used the first or natural interpretation as a pattern and a guide from which to draw the spiritual analogy.
Since the Old Testament age did not end until the Temple was destroyed (70 AD), and Paul said these things were written as types, can we not also conclude that the events prophesied by Christ and fulfilled in 70 AD could also be types of a more literal fulfillment (antitype) of His return to defeat the last enemy? If we say the last enemy was defeated in 70 AD in the ultimate sense, we have the obvious problem that people still die. The whole purpose of redemption is to restore what Adam lost. The destruction of Christ’s enemies in AD 70 was simply a token of how He will finish the job. Matthew Henry seems to think so in the following quote concerning Matthew 24.
[T]his prophecy, under the type of Jerusalem's destruction, looks as far forward as the general judgment; and, as is usual in prophecies, some passages are most applicable to the type, and others to the antitype; and toward the close, as usual, it points more particularly to the latter.
If we use the hermeneutic of the full preterists, we would have to conclude, in order to be consistent, that Matthew was wrong for applying Isaiah’s prophecy of a virgin to Mary. This “wooden literalism” smacks of “private interpretation.”
The scripture gives many examples of prophecies that were fulfilled already and also not yet. Below are some that are quoted in the New Testament.
Mat 1:22 So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: 23 “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.”
Matthew is quoting Isaiah 7:14. But in the context, Isaiah was talking about a sign for Ahaz. Isaiah was talking about his own son but the Holy Spirit was also speaking of Christ. Thus we see the apostolic method of interpretation. Isaiah’s prophecy was fulfilled already for Ahaz, but not yet for Mary. Isaiah meant it for Ahaz, but the Holy Spirit meant it for both.
Isa 7:14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
Isa 8:18 Here am I and the children whom the LORD has given me! We are for signs and wonders in Israel From the LORD of hosts.
Mat 2:14 When he arose, he took the young Child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt, 15 and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, “Out of Egypt I called My Son.”
Matthew is here quoting Hosea 11:1. Hosea is referring to Israel as God’s son. But we see from this that the true Israelite is Christ. We also see this in Isaiah where Israel is called the servant of the Lord (Isa. 41:8). The context in Isaiah continues to chapter 53 that describes the servant’s suffering for our transgressions. The Jews say that chapter does not refer to Christ, but to Israel. True. But the only true Israelite is Christ. He is the Good Olive Tree. But in the context of Hosea, it is referring to the nation of Israel. So here again we see a double application.
Hos 11:1 When Israel was a child, I loved him, And out of Egypt I called My son. 2 As they called them, So they went from them; They sacrificed to the Baals, And burned incense to carved images.
Mat 2:17 Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying: 18 “A voice was heard in Ramah, Lamentation, weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, Refusing to be comforted, Because they are no more.”
Clark’s Commentary says -
A voice was heard in Ramah] The Ramah mentioned here, (for there were several towns of this name,) was situated in the tribe of Benjamin, about six or seven miles from Jerusalem. Near this place Rachel was buried; who is here, in a beautiful figure of poetry, represented as coming out of her grave, and lamenting bitterly for the loss of her children, none of whom presented themselves to her view, all being slain or gone into exile. St. Matthew, who is ever fond of accommodation, applies these words, Mt 2:17, 18, to the massacre of the children at Bethlehem. That is, they were suitable to that occasion, and therefore he so applied them; but they are not a prediction of that event.
Mat 2:23 And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, “He shall be called a Nazarene.”
Which one of the prophets is Matthew quoting here? There is only one place these words are found in the Old Testament.
Jud 13:5 For behold, you shall conceive and bear a son. And no razor shall come upon his head, for the child shall be a Nazirite to God from the womb; and he shall begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the Philistines.”
It appears that the apostolic method of interpretation sees Samson as a type of Christ. The word to Samson’s mother was fulfilled in Samson already, but not yet in Christ. Jesus is the Greater Samson.
1Co 10:11 Now all these things [written in the Old Testament] happened to them as examples [Gr tupos], and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come.
We see this same principal in the covenant with David. The prophet Nathan promised four things, but Gabriel, to Mary, reversed the order of the four items. Observe the following. The New Testament substance is mirrored by Old Testament types just as the objects in a mirror are reversed.
Promise To David
1. Kingdom
2. House
3. Throne
4. God’s Son
The Type
2 Samuel 7:12 “When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 “He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 “I will be his Father, and he shall be My son.”
Promise To Mary
Son of God
Throne of David
House of Jacob
His kingdom
The Fulfillment
Luke 1:31 “And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus. 32 “He will be great and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. 33 “And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.”
This is a good example of how the prophecy to David had a double meaning. It was fulfilled in Solomon “already,” but not yet until the Greater Solomon came. Jesus said, “a greater than Solomon is here” (Luke 11:31).
Mat 4:13 And leaving Nazareth, He came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the regions of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14 that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: 15 “The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, By the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles: 16 The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, And upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death Light has dawned.”
John Gill says, “Christ's dwelling in Capernaum accomplished a prophecy of the prophet (Isa 9:1,2) and he went and dwelt there, that it might be fulfilled which he had spoken: the meaning of which prophecy is, that as those parts of the land of Israel, there mentioned, had suffered much by Tiglathpileser, who had carried them captive…”
Isa 9:1 Nevertheless the gloom will not be upon her who is distressed, As when at first He lightly esteemed The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, And afterward more heavily oppressed her, By the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, In Galilee of the Gentiles. 2 The people who walked in darkness Have seen a great light; Those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, Upon them a light has shined.
Mt 8:17 that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: “He Himself took our infirmities And bore our sicknesses.”
Here again, the prophecy from Isaiah 53 was fulfilled by Israel as the “Suffering Servant” already, but not yet as the Greater “True” Israelite at the cross.
The following is from How To Read The Bible For All Its Worth, by Gordon Fee and Douglas Stuart (Zondervan), which is highly recommended. The quotation concerns prophecy and second meanings:
At a number of places in the New Testament, reference is made to Old Testament passages that do not appear to refer to what the New Testament says they do. That is, these passages seem to have clear meaning in their original Old Testament setting and yet are used in connection with a different meaning by a New Testament writer.
As an example, consider the two stories of how Moses and the Israelites were miraculously given water from rocks in the wilderness: once at Rephidim (Exo 17:1-7) and once at Kadesh (Num 20:1-13). The stories are, it appears, simple enough and abundantly clear in their original contexts. But in 1Corinthians 10:4, Paul seems to identify the experience of the Israelites as an encounter with Christ. He says that "they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ." In each Old Testament story there is no hint that the rock is anything other than a rock. Paul gives the rock a second meaning, identifying it as "Christ." This second meaning is commonly called the sensus plenior (fuller meaning).
Upon reflection, one can see that Paul is drawing an analogy. He is saying, in effect, "That rock was to them as Christ is to us a source of sustenance in the same way that spiritual things are a sustenance for us." Paul's language in verses 2-4 is highly metaphorical. He wants the Corinthians to understand that the experience of the Israelites in the wilderness can be understood as an allegory of their own experience with Christ, especially at the Lord's Table.
The author enthusiastically agrees with this. But then Fee and Stuart go on to say that modern writers are not authorized to do what Paul did. With all due respect, I beg to differ. The very fact that Paul and the other apostles left us the pattern of how to interpret the Old Testament should authorize the church to follow their example. After all, are we not commanded to not be like the horse and mule that need a bridle to guide them? (Psalm 32:9) I do not believe the apostles took the Old Testament words out of their original context and assigned a whole new meaning. I believe they used the first or natural interpretation as a pattern and a guide from which to draw the spiritual analogy.
Since the Old Testament age did not end until the Temple was destroyed (70 AD), and Paul said these things were written as types, can we not also conclude that the events prophesied by Christ and fulfilled in 70 AD could also be types of a more literal fulfillment (antitype) of His return to defeat the last enemy? If we say the last enemy was defeated in 70 AD in the ultimate sense, we have the obvious problem that people still die. The whole purpose of redemption is to restore what Adam lost. The destruction of Christ’s enemies in AD 70 was simply a token of how He will finish the job. Matthew Henry seems to think so in the following quote concerning Matthew 24.
[T]his prophecy, under the type of Jerusalem's destruction, looks as far forward as the general judgment; and, as is usual in prophecies, some passages are most applicable to the type, and others to the antitype; and toward the close, as usual, it points more particularly to the latter.
If we use the hermeneutic of the full preterists, we would have to conclude, in order to be consistent, that Matthew was wrong for applying Isaiah’s prophecy of a virgin to Mary. This “wooden literalism” smacks of “private interpretation.”
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