Oaths 8 – The Real Constitution?
Oaths 8 – The Real Constitution?
So, how can we process this history of religious test oaths in America? We must use the bible. Conservatives accuse liberals of regularly departing from, even forgetting, the principles of the U.S. Constitution. And rightly so. However, what if the U.S. Constitution were not the founding document of America? You ask, “What do you mean? Of course, it’s the founding document!” Remember, we decided we must look at this issue biblically.
Forsaking God & Higher Taxes
Forsaking God & Higher Taxes
Through Moses, God commanded limits upon the king.
“When thou art come unto the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, and shalt possess it, and shalt dwell therein, and shalt say, I will set a king over me, like as all the nations that are about me; Thou shalt in any wise set him king over thee, whom the LORD thy God shall choose: one from among thy brethren shalt thou set king over thee: thou mayest not set a stranger over thee, which is not thy brother. But he shall not multiply horses to himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt, to the end that he should multiply horses: forasmuch as the LORD hath said unto you, Ye shall henceforth return no more that way. Neither shall he multiply wives to himself, that his heart turn not away: neither shall he greatly multiply to himself silver and gold.”
Matthew 24 part 10 – The Abomination Resulting in Desolation
Matthew 24 part 10 – The Abomination Resulting in Desolation
So which abominations were Daniel or Jesus speaking about regarding the end of Jerusalem in 70 A.D.? I don’t know of any specific raising of a false idol in the actual holy place of the temple by the Romans. There is an assertion that the Romans set up one of their banners with the Roman eagle, but I don’t know where or when. If it was in the temple area, that would have to have taken place after the Romans entered and took over the temple area. That would have been too late to act as a warning.
Continue reading “Matthew 24 part 10 – The Abomination Resulting in Desolation”
Matthew 24 part 9 – The Abomination Resulting in Desolations
Matthew 24 – The Abomination Resulting in Desolations
“And he informed me, and talked with me, and said, ‘O Daniel, I am now come forth to give thee skill and understanding. At the beginning of thy supplications the commandment came forth, and I am come to shew thee; for thou art greatly beloved: therefore understand the matter, and consider the vision. Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy. Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined. And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.’ ” Daniel 9:22-7.
Continue reading “Matthew 24 part 9 – The Abomination Resulting in Desolations”
Matthew 24 – Part 8 – What is “the sign?”
What is “the sign?”
“And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.” Matthew 24:30-1.
So, what is that sign? Could it mean the sign that the Son of man is in heaven and not a vision of Him coming from heaven? The sign that the Son of man is in heaven refers to Jesus’s statement to His accusers in Matthew 26:64: “Jesus saith unto him, Thou hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.” In other words, Jesus knew that after He was executed, resurrected and ascended to heaven, He would have all power in heaven and on earth to destroy His enemies and His church’s enemies.
Continue reading “Matthew 24 – Part 8 – What is “the sign?””
Stephen’s Defense – Acts 7
Stephen’s Defense – Acts 7
I. High Priest: “Are these things so?” “These things” were the accusations of blasphemy against Moses (no such biblical prohibition against blasphemy toward a deceased person), blasphemy against God, blasphemy against “this holy place,” & blasphemy against the law. Specifically, the men contending with Stephen said he said that Jesus would destroy this place & change the customs delivered by Moses. While reading Stephen’s brilliant defense in chap. 7, listen for any blasphemy of the type of which he’s accused. His 53-verse speech is a historical survey of the Jewish people. Along with evidence of blasphemy, listen for references to the temple & to what he focuses on in Israel’s history.
Sovereign God 012
Last Means Last Except . . . post 2
A Never-Ending Last Days
We also use the word “last” to describe days past, not future. “In the last few days” would be an example. But that would be stretching the meaning of “last” too far in the Hebrews passage. Clearly, the author is speaking of the end of something because he warns people about something passing away and of something else appearing and that they should view those “last” days in faith, as if they’re headed toward a destination, a goal, a finish. But the finish is something better than what was past, not something worse. Those who suffered in the past were giving their lives for us, for something to come, for something better. Hebrews 11. The Israelites who left Egypt were headed somewhere; they wandered because of disobedience, not because the goal could not be accomplished. The “last” days refers to the time just before the accomplishment of the mission or goal for which the faithful saints gave their lives.
Last Means Last Except . . .
Double Meaning & Continual Ending Tricks
Let’s get one thing out of the way. When you encounter a scripture passage with clearly literal elements mixed with symbolic or allegorical elements, you interpret the literal parts literally and the allegorical parts allegorically, not the other way around. Second, everyone recognizes symbols in scripture, including those who shout the loudest about not interpreting the scripture symbolically. Third, you interpret the bible’s symbols using the bible’s symbols, not your modern spin on those symbols. These three points will take you a long way toward interpreting the bible, not only correctly, but also much more intelligibly.