Here is the perseverance of the saints who keep the commandments of Yahweh and their faith in Yeshua. (Revelation 14:12)
Messages to explain end times events and a framework for the chronology of the events to come from a first century Christianity perspective.
Yom Kippur 2024: Explaining the Last Adam. The history of the Day of Atonement and its importance to the end of days.
The history of the Day of Atonement is almost as old as earth itself. This day is applicable to Christians today and incredibly important for understanding the end of days.
The Day of Trumpets, also called Yom Teruah, is an ancient Holy Day that prophecies the return of the Messiah. This knowledge has been lost since the first century.
The notes are posted below but please watch the video for much more detail and discussion.
Yom Teruah 2024
Chag Sameach everybody! Welcome to the Day of Trumpets, Yom Teruah. Lots of folks ponder prophecy and don’t realize we have been given a road map. This road map was established at creation and the lined out through the Holy Days of Leviticus 23. Most of Christianity doesn’t pay much attention to the Old Testament at all, to their peril. Once people realize the whole bible is applicable to us today and learn about the relationship of the Holy Days to prophecy, the bible makes a lot more sense. Let’s start with a scripture most people know.
Slide 2 (1Th 4:13-18)
The next step in prophecy is the return of Yeshua, the Messiah. Most believe this will happen at some random time in the future. That may very well be true, but there are big hints here for those of us who value the Torah as to what time of year He will return.
Slide 3 (Lev 23:1-2) then (Lev 23:23-25)
Leviticus 23 outlines YHVH’s appointed times. The KJV wrongly calls these feasts. Most are that, but the larger umbrella is the word moedim, or appointed times. Yom Kippur, for example, is not a feast so it does not fall into that category. It does, however, fall into the category of an appointed time. These days are Yahweh’s Outlook calendar. It’s when He expects His people to stop their lives and meet with Him. The Sabbath is weekly, the rest are annual.
When the Messiah was crucified on Passover and the Ruach, the Spirit, given on Shavuot/Pentecost, which are both appointed times, we realized that all these days have a prophetic significance.
When we look at the Day of Trumpets, we see similar language to Paul’s description of the return of the Messiah. There’s only one word for blowing here, trumpets is implied. The word for blowing is teruah, which is the real name of this Holy Day. It’s not Rosh Hashanah, it’s actually Yom Teruah. Teruah can mean “clamor, battle cry, shouting, blowing of trumpets, and general noise.” Connecting this day to the return of the Messiah is not a stretch at all. The first time the Messiah came, He came as a lamb. When He returns, it will be as a lion with legions of angels. It will be loud, visible, and overwhelming.
Slide 4 (Jos 6:1-5 NAS95)
Peter writes that a day is as a thousand years and a thousand years as a day to God. From this, we extrapolate that this earth, this era, has 6K years to effectively run its course. In Revelation 20, it is written there will be a future 1000 year period that’s a Messianic kingdom. It begins with the return of the Messiah and we believe the Day of Trumpets to signify that. These verses allude to it pretty directly. Jericho was a pagan city that YHVH wanted destroyed. It also symbolizes Egypt, Babylon, and all of men’s works. The people of God are to follow His instructions, no matter how silly, for the 6K years so when He topples this system, we will be found faithful. There was even a family who repented late in life on the wall of Jericho. Rahab, who hid the spies, was saved when the calamity befell Jericho. She and her whole family were grafted into the family of God, and she was even in the lineage of Yeshua. The lessons here are plentiful. When the Israelites crossed the Jordan, the people of Canaan knew it was the end of them. They knew it was for war. When the Messiah comes back, same thing. Most of the world will tremble. But some will repent and be saved, even in disaster. And the work that is coming is noisy and obvious. It’s not a secret. So if someone tells you the Messiah has already returned, well, you know not to listen to them. When He comes back, every knee will bow and every tongue confess. It’s going to be big, obvious, and the change to this planet will be a permanent change. When the ultimate kingdom comes, that Messianic kingdom, nobody will be able to say “I didn’t know about it, tell me more.”
Slide 5 Mark 13 – AD 70 and then the end. False Christs. We know Isaiah spoke about two different things at once so let’s not assume that can’t happen again. The temple is destroyed then the elect are gathered. The abomination of desolation twice, AD 70 and Maccabees.
End up at Mark 13:32 – nobody knows the day or hour. Idiom about the day of Trumpets. We use a calculated calendar today. This year and last it was correct. The days of the tetrad red moons, it was correct. But even if we know it to be quite accurate, we are never completely sure. Yom Teruah is the only Holy Day that falls on the first day of the month. It begins on the first day of the 7th month. In ancient times, they had to watch and be ready for this holy day. Once it was sighted, the silver trumpets from the trumpet would be sounded at the command of the Kohen Gadol, then the sound would be repeated throughout the land. A sabbath day that springs upon us… to a degree. People can surely count to 28 from the last month and start looking. As we have been looking more and more in recent years, haven’t we?
Slide 6 I Cor 15: 1-28 The resurrection tied to Trumpets. The order of things to come. We need to comfort one another with these words. There is an order. We know it. And even thought things get bad, and then worse, we know that once He returns, it will set in motion things prophesied for ages.
20 ties first fruits to the resurrection, the day He was resurrected.
In this message/discussion, I explain the depts of deception within our society and how we arrived in the present state. This deception includes confusion within religions, of course, which was and continues to be done by Satan. The adversary wants to deceive whoever he can to draw worship for himself or, at a minimum, draw worship away from Yahweh, the one true God, and His Son, Yeshua. However, our present state of confusion goes beyond religion.
We can trace our present state of affairs to a nation that no longer exists. The USSR purposely introduced deceit and confusion through the countries they overthrew. This was done by infiltrating schools and the media in order to introduce conflicting messages and concepts into a society. I prove they did this to use with a video of a former KGB agent who defected in the 1980s. This agent outlines how the USSR would destroy societies from within through methods of deception.
Because we have lost fundamental tools of comprehending information. I briefly outline the differences between social sciences and pure sciences. How we receive, categorize, and digest information on a basic level is crucial to returning society to normal. This pertains to religion because people are coming to the knowledge of the truth but then immediately being pulled into ludicrous directions. Folks who are easily led astray often have much zeal but entertaining flawed information, by mis-categorizing good information, or by setting unreasonable expectations of proof for doctrines. Please enjoy this message through one of the video offerings and provide some feedback! Shares and like are always appreciated!
Here is the message/discussion from our Shabbat gathering earlier today. I talk about how society got to be so disjointed and has such a hard time discerning truth at any level. I include who did this to us and why and provide the recipe for coming out of this confusion. Shalom! pic.twitter.com/t6ZGvwT2DT
— Chris (@Messianic73) December 24, 2023
Is David and Goliath Really about Underdogs?
The story of David and Goliath is often used to showcase the power of underdogs. We often give deference to the powerless through a conditioning that says those with power are usually the bad guys. Is this really the case? I contend the story of David and Goliath isn’t really about the weak or powerless, though. If we pick that story apart, it’s about a larger theme that plays out in the end times.
The United States is often paralleled with Israel and sometimes these parallels are impossible to ignore. Israel has both been the underdog and the overwhelming power, so has the United States. Our nation has had a series of “come from behind” victories that no other civilization shares, which helps condition us to favor come from behind victories. After World War II, though, the USA had to stop being the underdog and become the world’s policeman.
At both ends of the bible, those with overwhelming power are actually the good guys! This message shows how underdogs are neither inherently good or bad and shows that we in the USA are conditioned to favor the weak because of our country’s history, not because of Marxism.
There is a sinister nature to favoring the underdog. The Torah tells us not to favor the poor or the rich, the weak or the powerful, in matters of judgment. We must base our judgments on individual circumstances to determine proper justice.
The story of David and Goliath is often used to showcase the power of underdogs. We often give deference to the powerless through a conditioning that says those with power are usually the bad guys. Is this really the case? I contend the story of David and Goliath isn’t really… pic.twitter.com/wZWgpjAQsY
— Chris (@Messianic73) December 17, 2023
This is an in-depth study on the rise and fall of civilizations from a biblical perspective. Key points:
This is an in-depth study on the rise and fall of civilizations from a biblical perspective. Key points:
— Chris (@Messianic73) December 10, 2023
· The time it takes for societies to fall is a lot longer than we think.
· The timeline between Adam and the flood is about 1600 years.
· The United States is a metaphor for… pic.twitter.com/pMLkWNttWm
‘He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will grant to eat of the Tree of life which is in the Paradise of God.’
(Rev 2:7)
Adam and Eve had one commandment in the Garden of Eden and that was to not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. They were created immortal and given dominion over the earth with just this one rule, that they broke. After the fall, they were expelled from the Garden which separated them from the Tree of Life. This also separated all mankind from that tree which means we have been fallen, mortal beings ever since.
In the New Testament we learn about eternal life. God, who’s Name is Yahweh, has provided a mechanism for bridging the gap between mankind and eternal life through His Son, Yeshua. We know that the path to eternal life is to repent, accept Yeshua as the Messiah, be baptized, and then live a life of obedience. This lifestyle is outlined from Genesis to Revelation but is best illustrated through the life of Jesus the Christ, Yeshua the Messiah. He lived Torah perfectly and showed us how to keep the commandments, having died a sinless death for the sins of all who accept Him. He was resurrected by God and is now seated at His Right Hand. Yeshua is the Mediator between us and God and will return to judge the living and the dead.
The Tree of Life and the scripture verse that tells us plainly how to overcome is our logo. The recipe for attaining eternal life is comprised in one simple statement: Keep the Torah while believing in Yeshua. This represents the mission of this ministry. We strive to reach as many as possible with this simple message and help guide people into a walk that will lead us all to the Tree of Life.
Yeshua aka Jesus was saying things the audience already knew in Matthew 24. For instance, the abomination of desolation and the great tribulation were things that had already happened once! Click here for a deeper understanding of events to come!
Yeshua aka Jesus was saying a lot of things the audience already knew about in Matthew 24. The abomination of desolation had already happened once, for instance. Click here for a deeper understanding! pic.twitter.com/mi9ERBAIIa
— Chris (@Messianic73) December 4, 2023
Here is how to be identified as a child of God.
Videos through Rumble, Twitter, and Spotify below.
Do you want to be identified as a child of #God? pic.twitter.com/wKyTQftvcD
— Chris (@Messianic73) October 28, 2023
The Sign of God’s People
Slide 2 For you are all sons of God through faith in Messiah Yeshua. For all of you who were baptized into Messiah have clothed yourselves with Messiah. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Messiah Yeshua. And if you belong to Messiah, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to promise. (Gal 3:26-29)
While we do not condemn mainstream Christianity by any means, we have discovered some fundamental flaws in those systems and have moved as close to the early Christian beliefs as possible. The general feeling we get from the mainstream churches is that a new religion was established in the New Testament. That the Old Testament was effectively nullified with the New Covenant and how we worship was fundamentally changed. Some go so far as to say the church replaces Israel. This is just not the case. While the New Covenant is definitely new and different, the author of Hebrews tells us it’s a change in the law, not an abolition of the law. We can see in the New Testament that it was mostly Jewish people and proselytes (like the centurion who made the synagogue) for the first ten or so years after Yeshua’s ascension. Then significant numbers of gentiles, people like us, started coming to the faith all over the world. Paul is telling us here that was the intent all along. This is another step in the plan of salvation, that now people can join the family of God through accepting Yeshua as the Messiah and being baptized. Paul is saying here that gentiles who accept Yeshua join the family of God. We join Israel and come alongside those from Israel who accepted the Messiah as well. The text of the New Covenant in Jeremiah 31:31, which Yeshua quoted the night He was betrayed, shows that the New Covenant is with Judah and Israel. It’s not with gentiles. In order for us to matter, for the New Covenant to even apply to us, we have to have a mechanism for joining Judah or Israel. Paul explains this right here. This is why we call each other brother and sister, because we are adopted family now, and heirs according to the promise Yahweh made with Abraham to make his descendants more numerous than the stars.
Slide 3 “Therefore it is my judgment that we do not trouble those who are turning to God from among the Gentiles, but that we write to them that they abstain from things contaminated by idols and from fornication and from what is strangled and from blood. For Moses from ancient generations has in every city those who preach him, since he is read in the synagogues every Sabbath.” (Act 15:19-21)
This passage of Acts 15 is almost always cited without verse 21, that I have in bold here. Paul had traveled throughout the Roman Empire spreading the news of the Messiah primarily in the synagogues. Over time, significant amounts of gentile start joining in. The meeting in Acts 15 is estimated to be about 45-50 AD, fifteen years or so after Yeshua ascended. These dates are significant because it means for about ten years, there weren’t enough gentiles joining in for this to be an issue. What happened here is that many gentiles were showing up at synagogue, hearing of Yeshua, learning Torah, etc. that the Jewish believers wanted them to be circumcised. The response was to limit them to a few things right out of the gate, to abstain from things sacrificed to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from fornication as a start. They were already attending synagogue and hearing Moses each week, they would continue to do that and learn as they went. This is the same pattern we follow today, isn’t it? We learn of the Messiah, then we start attending somewhere, and grow as we learn.
When you are adopted into a family, you learn the family’s rules and customs and adopt them. First century gentile converts had to do this, hence attending synagogue to learn Moses.
Slide 4 YHVH spoke to Moses, saying, “But as for you, speak to the sons of Israel, saying, ‘You shall surely observe My sabbaths; for this is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I am YHVH who sanctifies you.” (Exo 31:12-13)
Now we arrive at the sign. The sabbaths. You’ll notice this is plural, not singular. It means the weekly Sabbath and the Holy Days. But it starts with the weekly. Those who learned about the Messiah were keeping the weekly Sabbath to learn Moses. They adopted the sign, well one of them. We know the Shema also tells us the Torah is to be a sign as well. But this is specifically about observing Yahweh’s appointed times. This is addressed to the “sons of Israel”. That benim Yisrael. It means children, not just men or sons. And the children of Israel is synonymous with the children of Abraham. One we are adopted into the family, we take the signs of the family, which means a change in behavior. We keep the Sabbaths.
Slide 5 Yeshua said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.” (Mar 2:27)
Thus the heavens and the earth were completed, and all their hosts. By the seventh day God completed His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made. (Gen 2:1-3)
The word for man in Mark 2:27 is Anthropos, which is Greek for mankind. It’s interesting that the word adam, which means the guy, also means mankind. The LXX actually uses Anthropos for adam in some places. Without getting to much into the word-weeds, the Sabbath was made for all of mankind to observe. It began as a sign for all of the people and was meant to be that for all of this era. In our western reckoning, from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday, we are to rest and enjoy creation. Yahweh rested on the 7th day of creation as did Adam. This pattern is here for us to emulate because we are made in the image of God. That means more than just photocopying. We are made to work, to labor, to enjoy creation, and then on Shabbat to take a break and commune with our Creator.
Slide 6 “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. “Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath of YHVH your God; in it you shall not do any work, you or your son or your daughter, your male or your female servant or your cattle or your sojourner who stays with you. For in six days YHVH made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day; therefore YHVH blessed the sabbath day and made it holy.” (Exo 20:8-11)
The 4th commandment, in Yahweh’s voice, told them to remember. That can be taken two ways. The first is that they forgot it in Egypt and they needed to remember it, to get back to it. The second is to not forget about it. To keep doing it. The commandment is comprehensive. Nobody works, everybody gets the day off. Even the animals. Yahweh is big about his creation getting a break. He even built in land rests for the earth, meaning soil. This commandment reminds us about Creation as well. How honoring the Sabbath emulates our Creator in how He rested while also keeping us humble. Knowing that we are but dust. The one who made the heavens and the earth made each of us, which means we are special, that He would think of us. But also that we are feeble in need of our Creator and cannot provide for ourselves without His providence.
Slide 7 YHVH spoke again to Moses, saying, “Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘YHVH’S appointed times which you shall proclaim as holy convocations—My appointed times are these: ‘For six days work may be done, but on the seventh day there is a sabbath of complete rest, a holy convocation. You shall not do any work; it is a sabbath to YHVH in all your dwellings.” (Lev 23:1-3)
This is where the entire earth gets the notion to come to church. The word holy convocations is miqra kodesh, a sacred or holy assembly. The idea of having a weekly assembly for the purpose of worship starts right here and it’s tied to the 7th day sabbath. Leviticus 23 outlines all the Sabbaths, more broadly all the appointed times. Appointed times are the word moedim, which is the same word translated seasons when the sun, moon, and stars are made in Genesis 1. The weekly sabbath is counted apart from the months by having an evening and a morning. Yahweh then added in the moon, the sun, and the stars for us to have annual observances. Our following these times shows the world that our God is Yahweh. Getting together on this day to have a set-apart assembly is a commandment, a blessing, and a sign. It gives us a pattern for our lives and keeps us grounded while we honor the creator. We look forward to seeing each other, sharing stories, a meal, and the Word of God. This is not a burden at all. Surrendering to Yahweh’s will and surrounding ourselves with those who do the same is a blessing. It shows our humility and our faith. You might even say it’s a sign 😊
Slide 8 After these things he (Paul) left Athens and went to Corinth. And he found a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, having recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had commanded all the Jews to leave Rome. He came to them, and because he was of the same trade, he stayed with them and they were working, for by trade they were tent-makers. And he was reasoning in the synagogue every Sabbath and trying to persuade Jews and Greeks. (Act 18:1-4)
Here we are, three chapters after Acts 15, and Paul is reasoning with both Jews and Greeks in the synagogue on Shabbat. They were having holy convocations on the day the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob declared and that’s who Paul preached Yeshua to. Paul was working six days and resting, worshiping, and preaching on Shabbat. Just was it was in the beginning so it should be to this day. The Greeks had adopted the sign of Yahweh’s people by turning from their pagan holidays and practices and adopting the true worship commanded by Yahweh and exemplified by Yeshua, the Messiah, the Son of God. Paul preached to these people because they knew the Tanakh, the Old Testament, and would know about the Messiah.
I often give a message about how the holy days, if they had been kept properly by Israel, would have resulted in peace. Had the nation of Israel actually followed Torah as they were supposed to, there would have been a predictability to life through weekly and annual observances. They would have been blessed with an abundance to bring as offerings year after year and the society would have flourished. These things are components of Yahweh intends for us to have shalom like the peace of that first Sabbath in Eden. When sin entered the world, it spiraled out of control until Yahweh was sad He made mankind and He brought a violent end for all but Noah and his family. That violent end was the result of mankind defying Yahweh and being incredibly sinful. Brothers and sisters, we find ourselves in another time that looks very similar to then. And this all ties together with October 7, 2023. When Israelis and those from all over the earth were keeping both the weekly Sabbath and an annual Sabbath in Israel. They were observing Shemini Atzaret and make no mistake about it, American and all sorts of foreign Christians were they observing along with the Jewish people. They were trying to experience shalom, peace. And the evil ones came, Chamas, the violent ones. Their thoughts are evil continually. And they hate the God of Abraham, of Isaac, of Jacob, and especially of Yeshua. So they attack on a day when they knew God’s people would be resting and they destroyed Yahweh’s rest.
Many have said there would be a Sunday law in the end times and that was the lawlessness of the end times. That never made sense to me because it isn’t “Sabbath-less-ness”, it’s comprehensive lawlessness. Today, though, I realize that keeping the Sabbath and the Holy Days is indeed part of the present tribulation. I see lawlessness and a rejection of God entirely, like in the days of Noah. We see plainly how an enormous amount of people want to kill God’s people and bring pure lawlessness across the entire world. This isn’t limited to the middle east, as we have seen people protest in favor of the demons all over the world, even here in America. This makes no sense because those who killed Israelis and foreigners in Israel would absolutely love to kill us, too. But now we are seeing people go after Jews very publicly. Please realize that we look like Jews because we have been adopted into the family of God. We are God’s people and by adopting His signs, His Torah, His commandments, we are targets just like the Jews. However, we keep the Sabbath because it is the sign of God’s people. And it appears the world wants to kill God’s people. So maybe there was something to this commandment playing a role in the end times.
I talk about managing emotions from a biblical perspective and how believers should react to the Israel Attack in this week’s message. Yes, it’s OK to be angry. Then what?
Messages below are from Rumble, then Twitter, then Spotify so folks can use the platform they are most familiar with. Then the written version below.
I talk about managing emotions from a biblical perspective and how believers should react to the #IsraelAttack in this week's message. Yes, it's OK to be angry. Then what? pic.twitter.com/DVpd8zFLCV
— Chris (@Messianic73) October 21, 2023
Managing Emotions
The truck story. We researched what we needed in a vehicle. It needed to be a 4X, have 4 doors, tow 9K pounds minimum, have certain interior comforts and cost no more than a certain price. I sent out for bids and a dealer said “come on down”. So we went down and they had two beautiful trucks ready for us. A blue one with the ride of a Cadillac and a black one with a stiffer ride but an upgraded engine. We drove the trucks and there was no way they cost what we could afford. When we asked them, they said there was no truck available that could do what we want for what we wanted to pay, would we like the blue one or the black one? The sales people had deceived us to get us to drive the trucks so we would make a huge financial decision based on emotion.
We left the dealership and got a message on the way home about a truck that matched what we wanted for our exact price point. Yahweh provided.
I tried to think about something else to talk about this week but this topic is so front and center that I just couldn’t. Or the Ruach pushed me in this direction. Last night, when it is customary for us to say Shabbat shalom to each other online, I couldn’t. That would make this time too normal. And when I think of saying it, I imagine the poor people being held hostage in dark tunnels beneath Gaza. They have no peace right now. They can only hope the Israelis find them quickly and free them. So here we are.
Two weeks ago, we saw an incredibly horrific, planned, premeditated attack on Israel by Hamas and Islamic Jihad terrorists. The terrorists attacked on the 8th day, also known as Shemini Atzaret, the 8th day of sukkot, which is a high sabbath culminating a week long festival. They did this on purpose. It was beyond dastardly. It was pure evil. After the attack was over, the Israelis found evidence that this was the sole purpose of the attack. Killing civilians, women and children, the elderly, and taking them hostage was the goal. In our country, we periodically have mass shootings where somebody goes berserk and shoots up a mall or a school. That’s evil. That might be the pinnacle of evil. But in this case, we have hundreds of people planning and financing a large scale version of this. To distract from the invasion, Hamas and Islamic Jihad launched thousands of rockets, thousands, into Israel to try and get past their missile defenses and make them think that was all that was happening.
In the aftermath, we are seeing videos of incredibly depraved behavior. Most of it completely unspeakable and I try not to watch. One video I saw was the incredibly cruel burning alive of two Israeli hostages. They were chained so they could not escape or quell the flames. I could not watch the whole thing. The terrorists are burning bodies of victims so badly that the Israelis can’t identify them. The world has not seen barbarism on a scale like this in a very long time.
Are you angry? Are you outraged? Is that OK?
Slide 2 Therefore, laying aside falsehood, SPEAK TRUTH EACH ONE of you WITH HIS NEIGHBOR, for we are members of one another. BE ANGRY, AND yet DO NOT SIN; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and do not give the devil an opportunity. (Eph 4:25-27 NAS95)
Being made in God’s image, we are supposed to have emotions because He has them. His Son was quite emotional when He was on the earth as well. We saw him pour out compassion on individuals and then on mankind as a whole with His death. Yeshua had a job to do and, while feeling things probably as deeper than anyone else ever has, He remained faithful and on mission. The flip side of emotions with Yeshua’s crucifixion is how the people were convinced very quickly to betray not only the Messiah, but to deny their very purpose and existence when they cried out “we have no king but Caesar”.
You can see the danger here with making rash decisions in the heat of the moment. Of course, Yeshua’s sacrifice and everything that happened with it were part of Yahweh’s plan of salvation. Those people reacted the way they were supposed to so God could be glorified. But what happened 50-ish days later when the Holy Spirit came and Peter preached Yeshua? Those who had been spun into a frenzy saw the error of their ways and asked how to make it right.
There are some things that are so awful that we react to them without thinking it through. Like when terrorists premeditatedly paraglide into an innocent country for the specific purpose of mass murder. Reacting viscerally to that is the proper reaction. Reacting violently to attack on yourself, your country, or innocents is normal and just. Reacting violently when it’s not a life and death situation is not. We need to have control of our emotions. A safeguard against making bad decisions in the heat of the moment is to make the bible our foundation. For us to channel our emotions to be useful or good, we must build our intellect and our culture on justice. We must have a solid foundation so when we react to something emotionally, we react properly. When we see tragedies, do we take it personally and have empathy? Or do we look at it as being disconnected?
Slide 3 “Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you, and you will be hated by all nations because of My name. At that time many will fall away and will betray one another and hate one another. Many false prophets will arise and will mislead many. Because lawlessness is increased, most people’s love will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end, he will be saved. This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come. (Mat 24:9-14)
Facing reality for a moment, hasn’t our love grown cold because lawlessness has increased? The amount of violence in the US today seems out of control. We have mass shootings almost routinely. We’re saturated with bad news of lawless deeds. That has an effect on us whether we like it or not. It’s simple reality when bad behavior happens so much it becomes normalized. We need to find a way to keep our hearts soft in these trying times.
Are you still outraged about what happened to Israel a week and a half ago? I am. I walked outside to get the mail yesterday and saw a neighbor walking his dog. I immediately thought of those in Israel who were doing normal things on October 7 when the monsters attacked them. I introduced myself to the neighbor and thanked God we live in a place that is still peaceful. It’s a sad state of affairs when the simple act of meeting a stranger on the street and saying hello is somehow fulfilling.
Slide 4 When the thousand years are completed, Satan will be released from his prison, and will come out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together for the war; the number of them is like the sand of the seashore. And they came up on the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, and fire came down from heaven and devoured them. And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are also; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever. (Rev 20:7-10 NAS95)
We know this is not now. It says “when the thousand years are completed”. They haven’t even started. Let’s be clear, in scripture events can happen several times. Prophesies can be fulfilled on a small scale and then on a big one. Satan also plays a huge role in deceiving the world, so he is surely getting warmed up here before the 1000 years starts. But these protests in favor of the terrorists and the refusal for colleges and others to support Israel is really astonishing. These protests all over the world of people hating Israel and supporting the bad guys is just shocking. And terrifying.
Now’s the time to say why we support Israel. It’s not because of theology. It’s not because of prophecy. It’s because they have a free and open society. They accept people from all over the world to come enjoy the promised land. People from more than two dozen countries were kidnapped when the monsters invaded. We know that the country called Israel today is not governed like Israel should be and we know they have huge sins in their multi-cultural society, but the reality is that we have to live in the now. They have enormous military might and the use it to defend their tiny country. They have had the power to erase Gaza for decades and have not done it. Because they just want to be left alone and free to live as they see fit. They are innocent and were attacked yet the world decries their response 100X or even 1000X the brutality of the attack by the monsters. It’s like we’re living in the twilight zone. But guess what, it’s a global deception. It’s a complete lie. It’s calling evil good and good evil on a global scale. So while we know this is not the ultimate time when all nations will go against Jerusalem, it’s still happening and we have to acknowledge it. Not because of theology, but because justice demands it.
Keeping our hearts and minds about us in tumultuous times is a challenge. The best way to know justice, maybe the only way, is to read our bibles. The whole thing. Cover to cover. And then continue to meditate on the Word of God.
Slide 4 “But when the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before Him; and He will separate them from one another, as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats; and He will put the sheep on His right, and the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. ‘For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in; naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me.’” (Mat 25:31-36)
These words are telling us parts of how not to grow cold. They are telling us how to be found doing His will when He returns. Be compassionate, be hospitable. Don’t forget the parables which were spoken just before this. Have oil in our lamps and use our talents. Stay involved, stay kind, and stay loving. And be around people who are like this, too.
When we get emotional, the best way to not sin and to be able to see the truth is to have filled our minds and our hearts with the Word of God. We are to speak truth to our neighbors. That means we have to know truth. Most consider this doctrine, which it includes, but for the love of Yahweh the entire world seems to be uniting against the country that was attacked. They are uniting in a lie. And it’s not some smoky back room conspiracy, it’s right in our faces. We have to give praise to Yahweh and Yeshua for those who can still tell the difference between good and evil, for we are a dwindling lot.
We study our Bibles to be closer to God and His Son. If we fill our minds and hearts with their will, then when something sad or awful happens, we will be much more likely to respond in a biblical fashion. When we fill our minds and our hearts with the ways of the world, we are more likely to respond in a worldly fashion. The world loves lies. The world loves evil. We love truth and peace. We are not to let the sun go down on our anger so that means there’s a limit to excusing mistakes carried out because of emotion. After we sleep on issues, we can then begin to divorce emotion and sort things out logically. How did this bad thing happen? Could we have done anything different? How can we make a change so the bad thing doesn’t happen again or is that even possible? After we cool down, then we can contemplate.
In the case of the attack on Israel, I’m still outraged and now even astonished at how many people in the west are already growing cold over it. Even to the point of supporting the monsters. Israel was providing water and electricity to those who attacked them. We are to be a forgiving people, we are to turn the other cheek, but there comes a point when action needs to be taken. This continent suffered tyranny under King George for many, many years before declaring our independence and going to war. Israel cannot be expected to live on the knife’s edge like this anymore. They must destroy those monsters for any sort of peace to exist. Let me be clear, I’m not supporting Israel because of some prophecy interpretation or because they are called Israel. I’m supporting them because they are an open and free country that just wants to be left alone. They allow people from all over the world to come and go because they are caretakers of the holy land. The behavior of their enemies is the opposite. I support Israel because their enemies are our enemies. The monsters who paraglided into Israel to kill women and children would do the same to us if given half the chance. When I see those poor teenage girls who have been kidnapped and drug into Gaza, I think of my own girls. And I think of how to protect my own girls and what I would do to get my own girls back should that happen to me.
This is because I love my neighbor as myself. I have empathy. And compassion. And a sense of justice. These all come from my relationship with Yahweh and His Son. And these traits run through my entire life, as they should yours. How long we suffer in bad relationships, how long we suffer in bad jobs, how long we tolerate injustice and misbehavior in all our lives needs to come from our relationship with God. Being patient and longsuffering has limits and sometimes we have to draw a line in the sand and say no more. The same apostle who taught about patience and perseverance also scolded the Corinthian church for tolerating immorality. So we know there are limits. When the bible tells us to care for the widows and the orphans, we better take heed.
What will happen to those who never believed and when is Judgment Day?
Christianity has a skewed vision of end time events. The day of Judgment is almost always scrunched in with the return of Jesus, whom we call Yeshua. However, the Judgment is actually 1000 years after His return. The period of time between his return and the judgment is called the millennium. Revelation 20 explains this gap of time clearly. Unfortunately, modern Christian teachings about the end of days ignores this period of time. When the Messiah returns, those who accepted Him as the Son of God are resurrected. They, along with the believers alive at that time, rise and meet Him in the air. He then descends to rule from Jerusalem for this 1000-year period of time. At the end of the 1000 years, unrepentant sinners and those who had never heard of Jesus, aka Yeshua, in their lifetimes are resurrected and judged against the context of their lives.
Yeshua speaks of two resurrections in John 5. The first is a resurrection of life, which is generically called “the first resurrection.” Revelation 20 and Matthew 25 speak directly to the requirements for salvation at the resurrection of judgment. The Greek words for judgment in the relevant verses are either krisis or krino, both of which mean, effectively, “decision time”. When all the nations are gathered before Yeshua’s throne, they are judged according to the deeds they did in their lifetimes. The text clearly states that some of the people present at the second resurrection are written in the Book of Life and are granted eternal life, which runs contrary to most Christian teaching today.
The video above is a message explaining all the relevant verses about the topics summarized. It includes good insight from a few of our congregants as well. Understanding that Yahweh (God) has provided an opportunity for the bulk of mankind to enter eternal life is a blessing. The pdf below is a written-out study in case you want to be able to look these things up without listening and pausing. The relevant verses are quite easy to understand, so please enjoy this teaching and please give a share if it blesses you.