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[0:00] Okay, now I think we are underway. And what I wanted to share with you before we look at several references, particularly in the Old Testament, and actually will be in the New as well.

[0:12] But I want to remind you right up front that prophetic dynamics will be radically different during the time of tribulation.

[0:23] Right now we live in a kind of situation where virtually everything is kind of predictable. But at the same time we need to understand that even though what we today would consider routine or normal, it's really extraordinary if you go back a hundred years and make a comparison.

[0:51] Because I'm sure that our ancestors 100, 150 years ago probably never would have believed that anyone, under any circumstances, would walk on the moon.

[1:05] But now we kind of shrug our shoulders and say, you know, no big deal. Several people have been up there and walked around. It's just an amazing thing. But there was a time when it would have been really considered otherworldly and impossible.

[1:19] And that's true with a number of things, which simply indicates that mankind has been in a progression mode ever since he's been on earth. And to one degree or another, we're all beneficiaries of that.

[1:31] So, in a way, fulfilled prophecy up to this point has operated in a familiar way. But what I want to say is that prophecy that is related to the tribulation period, this is that seven-year period of time spoken of by Daniel the prophet, Daniel chapter 9, and actually in chapter 2 as well.

[1:59] And it refers to the time that we are going to be talking. Well, actually, it's even after that. Because we've already looked at that tribulation period.

[2:10] And during the tribulation, there's going to be an incredible upheaval of everything that is considered normal and natural. And it is going to go, it's going to kick into a supernatural mode.

[2:26] And it is on that basis that we must understand the book of the Revelation. Revelation. And I dare say that when you come to these 22 chapters, you can understand why it is probably the most ignored book in all of the Bible.

[2:51] It is loaded with symbols. And as you read over those pages, there are things in it that are described that just absolutely boggle the mind. And the tendency is to think because those things are so removed from what we call the ordinary or the natural or even the doable, they are so far removed from that, the tendency is to spiritualize them.

[3:20] And say, well, it doesn't really mean that. It means something else. But then you're in a quandary as to what that something else is.

[3:31] Because you are limited only by the imagination of the person who is doing the interpreting. And you'll hardly find any two or three people whose imaginations agree.

[3:44] So what I am saying, and we've done this from the outset, but I want to reinforce it. I think we need to be committed to a very literal interpretation of the Bible, including the book of the Revelation.

[4:01] This does not mean that the Bible does not have a lot of figurative language in it, because it does. Figurative language is kind of like a poetic, colorful way of expressing a literal truth.

[4:18] And the Bible is laced with figurative language. But in almost every instance where the subject matter is to be taken in a non-literal way, the context makes that quite clear.

[4:34] Otherwise, we should take it at face value because words mean things, and the intent of the Bible is to communicate information.

[4:44] It isn't to confuse you or to befuddle you. It is to inform you. And the reason that the Bible is designed to inform us is because, along with the information, comes a responsibility for a response to that information.

[5:04] There is something there that we are supposed to do with what we understand. The Bible is all about what we are to be and what we are to do. But we cannot do what we are supposed to do unless we become what we are supposed to be.

[5:16] And it is out of our being that our doing works. And that all begins with understanding the Revelation. So, the unfamiliar with which we are now going to face in the Revelation, I want you to please keep that in mind.

[5:48] We are going to engage in this period of time that will transpire after the seven-year tribulation period, after the return of Christ, and in connection with the establishment of that kingdom.

[6:07] And we have already dealt with the subject of the kingdom of heaven coming to earth, and the prayer that is included in the oft-repeated phrase from Matthew's Gospel, which is a prayer for the coming of the kingdom.

[6:21] Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be done in thy kingdom come, thy will be done, so that your will will be done on earth as it is in heaven. And we are of the opinion that that is not the case now.

[6:36] But it is going to be. And we are talking about the kind of government worldwide that is going to exist in this millennial reign.

[6:48] And it's called the millennial because the word millennium literally means a thousand. And this is the thousand-year reign of Christ, which will come to an end in Revelation chapter 20.

[7:00] We'll be looking at that later. But what's going to be taking place during this reign? Remember, this is after the tribulation. This is after Christ has put down all the enemies of Israel.

[7:11] This is after the remnant has been saved and Christ is ruling and reigning on earth. This is known as the kingdom of God or the kingdom of heaven come to earth.

[7:27] Right now, it is only a prophecy. And the greatest reason we have for believing that it is going to come to pass has to do with the prophecies that have already come to pass.

[7:43] And it is, as far as scripture is concerned, someone has said that prophecy is nothing more than history recorded in advance. And that is precisely what it is.

[7:53] So, I want you to keep in mind that there is a tendency to reject, allegorize, or spiritualize what the Bible says is coming due to our having established what we call normal, natural, and thus capable of being accepted.

[8:08] Things that are featured in future prophecies that we'll be looking at do not fit our mold of experience and expectations, which lead us to reject them then as fanciful and impossible of any literal fulfillment.

[8:26] And this is exactly why the book of the Revelation is so greatly ignored and has been for so long. Because the tendency is to look at the events that are described in there and say, well, that can't be real.

[8:41] It can't be like that. Well, if it isn't like that, and if it doesn't mean what it says, then what does it mean?

[8:52] And the response is often, search me. I have no idea. So, the tendency is to just back away from it. But, you know, and we've looked at this before.

[9:03] The book of the Revelation is the only book in the Bible where a divine promise of blessing is actually extended to those who read the prophecies of that book.

[9:21] And I simply cannot bring myself to believe that we are expected to read them, but without any understanding.

[9:36] That's just nonsensical. You cannot respond to what you do not understand. You cannot respond to what you do not understand the requirements or the expectations to be.

[9:51] And it is tragic that a book that is really designed for the believer's comfort, information, instruction, blessing, is virtually ignored because of these things.

[10:03] So, an abnormal sun, moon, and stars, I say abnormal, sun, moon, and stars will be playing roles they do not now demonstrate in our present sphere of what we regard to be normal.

[10:19] Even in our own history of the past, developments have occurred, developments have occurred, never thought to be possible, as I've already mentioned. Two or three hundred years ago, the norm, so-called, has changed persistently to what would have been considered earlier abnormal.

[10:40] Okay? You're all with me on that, I trust. So, keeping this in mind, we've got a number of references to select, and I want you to go, first of all, to the book we've been talking about, Revelation chapter 4 and verse 11.

[10:54] We've got a number of references to consider, and I'll be as brief as I can with each of these. And it isn't easy because they just beg for some elaboration.

[11:07] I'll have to resist. Revelation chapter 4 and verse 11 contains the only place that I know of in the whole Bible that explains why there is something rather than nothing.

[11:23] And this is a conundrum to philosophers and theologians for centuries. Why does anything exist? What's the point? Because there was a time when there was nothing.

[11:35] And this someone that we call the deity, the creator, brought all things into existence, and this verse tells us why.

[11:46] When the 24 elders, in verse 10, and I wish I could identify these people, I cannot. There's speculation as to who they really are.

[11:56] They are mentioned multiple times in the Revelation, but they are never defined as to who they actually are. They are just referred to as 24 elders.

[12:08] They will fall down before him who sits on the throne, and will worship him who lives forever and ever, and will cast their crowns before the throne, saying, Worthy art thou, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power.

[12:23] For, or because, thou didst create all things, and because of thy will, and some translations render it, because of thy good pleasure, they existed and were created.

[12:41] That's it. That's it. That's the whole ballgame, as far as why there is anything. Simply because this deity who had the ability to create ex nihilo, to bring substance and materiality out of nothing.

[13:02] Mind-boggling concept. We can't create anything. We make things. But we have to have pre-existing material to do it. But this one created ex nihilo.

[13:14] He brought things into existence that had no prior existence or matter at all. And he is a self-revealing deity. We do not know this God because we have discovered him.

[13:26] We know this God because he has chosen to reveal himself. He is a self-revealing God. We are going to look at creation of, well, no, we won't.

[13:40] We won't go there. But there will be angelic and humans in a divine gesture of condescension to partner with created beings. And this is the dynamic that brings angels and humans into the picture, both fallen and unfallen angels.

[13:57] Because this creator God, in his absolute sovereignty, has deigned to condescend, if you will. Stoop, if you will.

[14:11] To incorporate his creatures in his plan whereby he is going to work in concert with these lesser beings that he has created.

[14:24] And some of them will be angels and some of them will be humans. God could have just taken this Bible and just, kaplop, just dropped it down from heaven. But he chose to utilize human instruments in giving us this word.

[14:40] So it comes with God's authority, but it comes through the channel of humanity. And we can identify with that. The Bible has a human touch to it.

[14:51] But it also has a divine authority to it. And it really irks me. And I don't know how many times I've heard this. You probably have two. Well, the Bible was just written by men.

[15:02] Well, that's true. It was. But it was not authored by men. That's the difference. God used human penman to actually write the original text.

[15:17] And he breathed into them. That's the anoustos. That's the doctrine of inspiration. He breathed into them the content that he wanted written. But he filtered it through their vocabulary, through their experiences, through their psyche, so that we have a human book, humanly written, but conveying divine authority.

[15:41] So the Bible has one author and many writers. Forty writers plus, over a period of 1,500 years, written on three different continents in three different languages.

[15:55] It's the most amazing thing. And this book is the planet's most priceless treasure. It is the most recorded.

[16:07] It is the most published. It is the most distributed. And it is the most ignored. In many regards. At the same time, it's very well studied by a great many people worldwide.

[16:19] So this is an incredible book. And we would not have access to any of the information that we're going to be sharing, apart from what is revealed here. So God is gracious and pleased to use human and angelic instruments in his creation to partner with in order to realize his objectives.

[16:38] And such is reflected all throughout Scripture. He used Abraham as the father of the faithful, Moses, the meekest man on all the earth, and David, one that we are going to focus on this morning, who is referred to as a man after God's own heart.

[16:52] I've never been able to completely put a satisfactory handle on that because there were ways and times in which David behaved very badly.

[17:03] And yet, I think the phrase, a man after God's own heart, is best defined by one of the things that the Lord said about David.

[17:14] I don't recall where it is, but it's, I think, for 2 Samuel. Where David had set about to do the Lord's will wholeheartedly.

[17:26] He put everything into it. And yes, he most certainly had some moral lapses. No question about that. It just demonstrated his humanity.

[17:37] But probably the most dynamic thing that we are going to find by way of the supernatural or miraculous in connection with what we are looking at has to do with the resurrection of the dead.

[17:57] This is the really big item. And it is interesting that we're coming up on this weekend when we will be celebrating that.

[18:10] But it is probably as much as anything that is going to characterize the supernatural aspect of the millennial reign of Christ because so many people, with which we are familiar in the Bible, who are dead in so far as their body is concerned.

[18:32] And that's what you really need to keep in mind. Because God is not the God of the dead, but the God of the living. So many, as far as the Bible is concerned, who are dead are going to have the spirit that departed their body at the point of death reunited with that body and it's going to be a glorified body.

[18:54] Now we've got millions and millions of bodies and graves all over the earth and buried at sea that have been decomposed into nothing and we have no idea how God is going to resurrect these bodies and reunite them with the spirit that's already departed.

[19:13] But he's going to do that and I just want to throw this out because to me it's kind of neat. I don't know if there's any truth to it or not, but I think it's rather fascinating. Do you realize that your DNA is the formula for making you...

[19:33] Think of that. Each of us has a separate DNA and your DNA is your formula.

[19:44] And if that precise formula can be activated or reproduced what we would get is you.

[19:58] I guess you would call that a kind of cloning. So, think of it this way. And this is a purely humanistic way of thinking of it because of our limitations and I don't know how God's going to do this.

[20:09] But just think of God as having this enormous file filled with DNAs. Each one is separate. And all he has to do is activate one.

[20:21] And there you are. You just... Wow. Well, I won't go any further than that. But that's kind of neat. How God is going to bring all of these things together and you are going to be you but you're going to have that glorified body that will be akin to the body of Christ when he came out of that tomb.

[20:41] And that too is a supernatural thing to consider. Now, let's get into this because our time is going to get away from us and I won't even get underway. Matthew chapter 22. Matthew's Gospel chapter 22.

[21:00] And verse 41. Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them a question.

[21:13] Now I want you to note in the context, let's be very careful here by applying our hermeneutics. Who is it that's being addressed? This is the opposition.

[21:25] These are the people that Jesus had difficulty with all through his earthly ministry. These are the Pharisees. There were a couple exceptions that really did get on board. One was Nicodemus and the other was Joseph of Arimathea.

[21:37] But by and large, the Pharisees were enemies. They were on the other side. And we read that in verse where did I say it was?

[21:53] 2241. Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them a question, saying, What do you think about the Christ?

[22:11] Whose son is he? You've got to understand what's really taking place here. He is the Christ. But he also recognizes that they don't think so.

[22:25] They seriously reject his being the Messiah. So Jesus is presenting to them what we might consider a kind of a hypothetical. He's saying, Now I want you to think in terms of who the Messiah really is, or who you think the Messiah really is.

[22:44] I recognize the fact that you don't think I am the Messiah, but let's just suppose we're talking about the Messiah now. Okay? Think in terms of the Messiah. Alright? Now let me ask you a question.

[22:56] Whose son is he? And they said to him, The son of David. And the answer is kind of like this. Well, everybody knows that.

[23:08] Everybody knows whose son the Messiah will be when he comes. He will be a direct descendant of David the king. Now keep in mind, when Jesus asked this question and they answered it, David the king physically had been dead and buried for a thousand years.

[23:28] Jesus wasn't born until 14 generations after David the king. So he's off the scene. In verse 43, Jesus said, Then how does David in the spirit call him Lord?

[23:48] Saying, The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at my right hand until I put thine enemies beneath thy feet. Jesus said, My question to you is, if David calls the Messiah Lord, how is he his son?

[24:06] I just love this. And it says, And no one was able to answer him a word, nor did anyone dare from that day on to ask him another question.

[24:20] In other words, he just bested them and embarrassed them so badly that they're not going to challenge him anymore. They'll have to work up their courage later on. So what we've got here, and by the way, this is taken from Psalm 110 and verse 1.

[24:34] And when you read it, it just sounds like some kind of double talk. My Lord said to my Lord, and what we have here is, the Father, in the triune nature of the Godhead, the Father in the Trinity is saying to the Son, Sit here at my right hand, and we know that's where Jesus ascended to when he went back to heaven, to the right hand of the Father.

[24:59] Jesus said, Sit here, or the Father said to Jesus, Sit here by my right hand until I make thine enemies thy footstool. In other words, Jesus, so far as the cross was concerned, so far as the public was concerned, so far as the world was concerned, Jesus was a conquered individual.

[25:19] It's hard to call anybody anything else other than having been conquered when you're hanging on the cross, die. That's conquered. But of course, Sunday's coming, huh?

[25:30] The resurrection's coming, and that's going to change everything. But when Jesus ascended to heaven, when he said, Father, into thy hands I commit my spirit, and he breathes his last, his immaterial part of his being left his body, went to be with the Father, body went to Joseph of Arimathea's tomb to be resurrected three days later.

[25:53] And what we have here is two persons in the triune Godhead communicating, and the Father is addressing the Son.

[26:04] And that is based on Psalm 110 and verse 1. Now, while we're in the New Testament, let's come quickly to Acts chapter 2. Acts chapter 2.

[26:17] This is a very familiar day of Pentecost, and we're going to have to skip much of it, but I do want you to begin with verse 22, if you would, please.

[26:31] Acts 2 and 22. Peter is standing and giving his message. This is a powerful presentation. And this message is addressed to a totally Jewish constituency.

[26:47] There are no Gentiles here. This is a Jewish feast day, and Gentiles wouldn't even be allowed. This is in the temple. And it's in connection with the Pentecost, 50 days after the Passover.

[26:58] And Peter, as a Jew, addresses them, and he says, Men of Israel, listen to these words. Jesus the Nazarene, a man attested to you by God with miracles and wonders and signs which God performed through him in your midst, just as you yourselves know.

[27:18] This man, this man Jesus, delivered up by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put him to death.

[27:31] And I just want to insert something here very briefly. In this one verse, we find a responsible God in his sovereignty setting this thing up. and we also find responsible man in his sin being an instrument, a willing instrument in the crucifixion of Christ.

[27:50] So these are married together here. And in verse 24, it says, And God raised him up again, putting an end to the agony of death since it was impossible for him to be held in its power.

[28:01] For David says of him, and this is a messianic psalm, he's speaking of King David, and remember, when Peter is addressing the Jews on the day of Pentecost, David has been dead physically for ten centuries.

[28:20] He's been off the scene. But he is one of the great heroes. There are three really, really outstanding heroes in Judaism. And they are Abraham and Moses and David.

[28:36] They are the big three. as far as they're concerned. Now, when you're talking about the lineages and the tribes and all the rest of it, and whenever the New Testament talks about the fathers, the fathers, the fathers, it's always talking about Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

[28:49] Those three. So keep that in mind if you will. David says of him, I was always beholding the Lord in my presence, for he is at my right hand that I may not be shaken.

[29:00] Therefore, my heart was glad and my tongue exalted. Moreover, my flesh also will abide in hope because thou wilt not abandon my soul to Hades, nor allow thy Holy One to undergo decay.

[29:16] This is talking about the putrefaction of the physical body. Everything that is biological, when it dies, it starts to decay.

[29:27] It breaks down. and it just returns to disorder. It's dead. And it smells dead, too. This is one reason that we bury the dead and put them out of the way.

[29:42] And he's talking about the prevention of his body undergoing decay, and the reason it is not is because he's going to be raised from the dead before that putrefaction accomplishes its goal.

[29:56] You will not allow your Holy One to undergo the cake. Thou hast made known to me the ways of life. Thou wilt make me full of gladness with thy presence. He's quoting this from the Psalms, and the people know it full well.

[30:07] And then he delivers his punchline. And Peter says, Brethren, I may confidently say to you regarding the patriarch David that he both died and was buried and his tomb is with us to this day.

[30:24] And the implication is, so that doesn't make any sense. He's got to be talking about somebody else. Don't you get that? And so, because he was a prophet and knew that God had sworn to him with an oath to seat one of his descendants upon his throne, he looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that he was neither abandoned to Hades nor did his flesh suffer decay.

[30:55] This Jesus God raised up again to which we are all witnesses. Therefore, having been exalted to the right hand of God and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured forth this which you both see and hear.

[31:12] For it was not David who ascended into heaven, but he himself says, The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at my right hand until I make thine enemies a footstool for thy feet.

[31:23] Therefore, let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.

[31:34] Don't you get it? Peter's saying, he's not talking about David. David's dead and buried and we know where his tomb is. He's talking about the Messiah. And you know, there were at least 3,000 people there who looked at each other and said, He's right.

[31:58] He's right. That's exactly what that psalm means. Not talking about David the king. It's talking about David's greater son, Yeshua HaMashiach.

[32:11] And 3,000 of those people said, Well, how about that? We had him wrong. All along. And these were the 3,000 who believed and were baptized in his name on that day of Pentecost.

[32:27] And the baptism and how they did it, that's another issue that we won't go into. But all of this ties together. Now come quickly, if you will, to some Old Testament references. Let's go back to Jeremiah chapter 30.

[32:43] Jeremiah chapter 30. verse 7.

[32:55] Where are we going to put Jeremiah? We're going to put him and his prophecies about halfway between David the king and Jesus the Messiah.

[33:08] Jeremiah. In other words, Jeremiah was approximately 500 years in writing his prophecies before Jesus was born in Bethlehem.

[33:22] So keep that in mind as we look at the text beginning with verse 7. Jeremiah chapter 30. Alas! For that day is great.

[33:36] There is none like it. And it is the time of Jacob's distress. Now do you think he's talking about the man Jacob? No.

[33:47] Of course not. Who's he talking about? He's talking about the nation of Israel. Jacob had his name changed by God at the brook Jabbok when he wrestled with the angel.

[33:59] And he changed his name from Jacob to Israel. But a lot of times he is used in both ways. Sometimes it's referring to him as an individual. Sometimes it's referring to the nation.

[34:10] And in this case it is the time of Jacob's distress or Jacob's trouble. This is talking about the tribulation period when the Jewish people are going to be undergoing worldwide persecution and two-thirds two-thirds of the population of the Jewish people will be murdered.

[34:35] Done away with. Time of Jacob's distress but he will be saved from it. And this ties in with the Romans 10 passage that refers to all Israel being saved.

[34:46] It will be Israel that will be Israel at that time which will be one-third of the nation's Jewish people and they will constitute the remnant. And that's the third that will be saved.

[34:59] He will be saved from it. And it shall come about that on that day declares the Lord of hosts that I will break his yoke from off their neck and will tear off their bonds and strangers shall no longer make them their slaves but they shall serve the Lord their God and David their king whom I will raise up for them.

[35:23] Going to be a whole lot of people raised up when this happens and David is going to be just one of them. Moses and Elijah they're all coming back. In fact they made an appearance at the transfiguration and they are going to come back too during this time.

[35:39] Fear not O Jacob my servant declares the Lord do not be dismayed O Israel for behold I will save you from afar. And this is talking about the dispersion the scattering bringing them back.

[35:53] And your offspring from the land of their captivity and Jacob shall return and shall be quiet and at ease and no one shall make him afraid.

[36:05] For I am with you declares the Lord to save you for I will destroy completely all the nations where I have scattered you. This is the second coming. This is the valley of Jehoshaphat.

[36:17] This is Revelation 19 that we'll be looking at a week from this Sunday and it has to do with Christ returning and the sharp sword proceeds out of his mouth. He will decimate the enemies of Israel with his spoken word.

[36:32] It will be an enormous conflict. It will be the armies of the Antichrist armed against one individual and he will be the only one fighting and that will be Christ.

[36:44] And that's what he meant when he said that he will tread the wrath of the winepress of God alone. There'll be no army.

[36:56] There'll be armies behind him but he will be the only one engaging in conflict and he will be coming from Basra and his garments will be stained with red and there is the controversy that goes on.

[37:10] This is just amazing stuff. Verse 11 I am with you declares the Lord to save you. I will destroy completely all the nations where I have scattered you. Only I will not destroy you completely but I will chasten you justly and will by no means leave you unpunished.

[37:28] This is God spanking the nation of Israel and he's going to do it with adversity in the same way that he did when he had Nebuchadnezzar the Babylonian heathen king come over and drag them off into captivity for 70 years because of their idolatry.

[37:48] All of that was about divine discipline. God was chastening his people for their sin. And what son is he whom the Lord chastened not?

[37:58] So Israel is going to undergo a time of correction and purging and chastening and they will come forth from that purified recommitted to Jehovah in the way they ought to be.

[38:12] Now there are other references and I must take them quickly. So while we're in the neighborhood let's stop at Ezekiel it's right after Jeremiah Ezekiel chapter 34 Ezekiel 34 and verse 22 22 well we just have to jump in somewhere so let's start with 22 therefore I will deliver my flock and they will no longer be a prey and I will judge between one sheep and another then I will set over them one shepherd my servant David and he will feed them he will feed them himself and be their shepherd and I the Lord will be their

[39:13] God and my servant David will be prince among them I the Lord have spoken and I will make a covenant of peace with them what is this covenant of peace this is the new covenant this is the Jeremiah 31 covenant spoken of by the prophet Jeremiah about the days come when he will make a new covenant with not like the covenant I made before with them which they broke that was the mosaic covenant and this is going to be the new covenant and I will eliminate harmful beasts from the land so that they may live securely in the wilderness and sleep and so on so on so on so while we're in the neighborhood Jeremiah I'm sorry Ezekiel 37 and 21 37 21 and say to them thus says the Lord God behold I will take the sons of Israel from among the nations where they have gone and

[40:15] I will gather them from every side and bring them into their own land and this of course is the land of Israel and I will make them one nation in the land on the mountains of Israel and one king will be king for all of them and they will no longer be two nations and they will no longer be divided into two kingdoms and what's he talking about here at the time Ezekiel wrote this Israel was a divided nation remember between the ten tribes and the two tribes in the southern kingdom and the northern kingdom well they're going to be reunited in this time and they will verse 23 they will no longer defile themselves with their idols or with any of their transgressions but I will deliver them from all their dwelling places in which they have sinned and will cleanse them and they will be my people and I will be their God and my servant David will be king over them and they will all have one shepherd and they will walk in my ordinances and keep my statues and observe them how's that going to happen

[41:26] David is going to be resurrected just like a whole lot of other people are going to be resurrected why should we think it's strange that David is going to be one of many because God is not the God of the dead but the God of the living a couple of other references then we'll open it for some Q&A let's go to Hosea chapter 3 Hosea chapter 3 and verse 4 for the sons of Israel will remain for many days and what this is talking about is right now right now this is being fulfilled verse 4 is being fulfilled of Israel even as we speak and it has been for a long time Israel ceased to be a nation for 2,000 years you know what happened with the decimation of Israel in 70

[42:27] AD when the Romans conquered the Jews were just scattered everywhere and even driven out of the land and the Romans even renamed Jerusalem they put a new name on it called Capitolina and they tried to completely Romanize the whole thing and they just scattered the Jews all over the Mediterranean world and that's what this is talking about here when it says the sons of Israel will remain for many days without a king or a prince and the last king they had was Hezekiah and they haven't had a king since so for 2,000 years they have ceased to be a monarchy and without sacrifice they have not been able to sacrifice sacrifice is the very heart of Judaism it was the animal sacrifice that was the core that was the centerpiece of

[43:28] Israel and of course that all prefigured the supreme sacrifice that was to come but they have not been able to do that and you recall I mentioned to you earlier when I talked to some Jewish rabbis in Israel and I said how is it that you practice Judaism when the very heartbeat of Judaism which is the sacrifice is removed how can you have Judaism without the sacrifice and he said well we pray that was the best he could do we pray but can you imagine God demanding that certain animals be sacrificed and honored to him and that's another subject I don't want you to get the idea that God gets some kind of kicks out of the killing of animals but all the whole sacrificial system was set up to condition and prepare the nation of Israel and give them an understanding of the innocent dying for the guilty so that they would be able to connect the dots when Jesus Christ died on that cross it was not with the blood of animals of bulls and goats but by his own blood he entered in to the temple and that is what this is all about so they will abide many days without king or prince without sacrifice or sacred pillar without ephod or household idols and that's where they are now afterward the sons of

[44:52] Israel will return and seek the Lord their God and who will that be that will be the surviving remnant that one third of Israel worldwide that will gather in Petra and there they will be sequestered and providentially protected and provided for by God himself in the same way that he did when they came out of Egypt and this is by the way just another illustration of what I've been telling you about the proliferation of the miraculous that is going to be characteristic during this time that will be the new paradigm and so much is going to be supernatural that we do not see occurring but then it's going to be standard operating procedure and it is going to be absolutely amazing they will return and seek the Lord their God and look at this and David their king and they will come trembling to the

[45:56] Lord and to his goodness in the last days one more reference and it's in Haggai book of Haggai one of the most ignored little books probably in all the Bible right after Zephaniah Haggai chapter 2 verse 20 then the word of the Lord came a second time to Haggai on the twenty-fourth day of the month saying speak to Zerubbabel governor of Judah saying I am going to shape the heavens and earth let me just give you a little rundown about Zerubbabel Zerubbabel is going to be kind of like a man in charge when the children of Israel return to Israel from the land of Babylon where they have been for seventy years during that captivity

[46:57] Nehemiah is going to be in charge of building the wall Ezra is going to be in charge of the temple and rebuilding that and the sanctuary and everything connected with the religion and Zerubbabel is going to largely be responsible for the politics and the organization of the different things that are going to take place then and it's quite fascinating here to read what he says about Zerubbabel too Haggai 2 20 word of the Lord came the second time to Haggai the 24th day of the month saying speak to Zerubbabel governor of Judah saying I'm going to shake the heavens and the earth and I will overthrow the thrones of kingdoms and destroy the power of the kingdoms of the nations and I will overthrow the chariots and their horses and their riders will go down every one by the sword of another on that day declares the Lord the signet ring was like a seal of authority and the one who had the signet ring with the impression on it could put that seal on any document and that would make it legal or binding so it is a mark of authority and so rebel is going to have that kind of authority so what we're going to have is a chain of command and

[48:34] I'm not going to well we can take a couple more minutes okay a chain of command that is going to be established during this time Christ is going to rule and reign in Jerusalem over the entire earth under him as a vice regent David the king is going to rule and reign over Israel that will be his bailiwick and under David there will be the twelve apostles of whom Jesus said in Matthew 19 I think it was yeah Matthew 19 27 through 30 day you know Peter Peter asked the question we've left everything we've left our boats our homes our families we've left everything to follow you what's the payoff what are we going to get out of this and

[49:38] Jesus said barely I say unto you that you who have followed me in the regeneration that's the millennium when the son of man comes into his kingdom you also you twelve shall sit one upon each of the twelve thrones of Israel judging the twelve tribes David the king will be over those twelve men and those twelve men apostles resurrected will be over the tribes of Israel and the whole situation will be one of peacefulness and prosperity and justice and equity the kind of things that have always escaped us because Christ will be ruling and reigning so in the final analysis and the last two references I want to give you are in Deuteronomy Deuteronomy we're going all the way back see everything in the

[50:42] Bible is connected to everything in the Bible please remember that forever everything in the Bible is connected to everything in the Bible and in Deuteronomy chapter 15 this is way back this is Moses bailiwick when he was still alive and if you will look at verse 6 for the Lord your God shall bless you as he has promised you and you will lend many nations but you will not borrow and you will rule over many nations but they will not rule over you listen from the time this was said up until the present time there's almost always been somebody else ruling over Israel you to you you shall not harden your heart nor close your hand from your poor brother in other words this is a demand for generosity but you shall freely open your hand to him and shall generously lend him sufficient for his need and whatever he lacks beware lest there is a base thought in your heart saying the seventh year the year of remission is near and your eyes hostile that involves the

[52:30] Jewish law etc but the heart of the thing is in verse 10 you shall generously give to him your heart shall not be grieved when you give to him because for this thing the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and all your undertakings and this is going to be an entirely new kind of thing and then the last reference is in Deuteronomy chapter 28 and it's one of my favorites Deuteronomy chapter 28 and verse 1 now it shall be if you will diligently obey the Lord your God being careful to do all his commandments which I command you today the Lord your God will set you high the heavens to give rain to your land and season to bless all the work of your hand and you shall lend to many nations but you shall not borrow and the

[53:51] Lord this is beautiful and the Lord shall make you the head and not the tail and you only shall be above and you shall not be underneath if you will listen to the commandments of the Lord your God which I charge aside from any of the words which I command you today to the right hand or to the left to go after other gods to serve and that's what they've been doing for almost their whole history but when these who constitute the remnant are with their backs against the wall and the Antichrist is threatening their annihilation they are coming off of a mode of deep sorrow and repentance and they bid indeed destroy God's Messiah and they will look unto him whom they crucified and they will mourn for him and they will beg and plead for him to return and he will and when that happens these people have already undergone a moral spiritual cleansing and they will fit the mode here and they will be obedient to the

[55:07] Lord and God is going to make them the head and not the Gentiles and even though it is a bitter pill for many Gentiles who do not like the Jew many of whom are even anti Semitic the time is coming and the scriptures make it very very clear when the nation of Israel is going to be the lead nation for the entire earth and Christ will be ruling and reigning and then the lame man will leap like a deer the eyes of the blind will be opened and all of these things that beset us now by way of adversity and sorrow and heartache and everything are virtually going to be eliminated and Christ will rule and reign with a rod of iron and his son interestingly enough we've got a real mix here how could someone who is born a thousand years after his ancestor be his superior well the only way that can happen is if one of them is deity and that of course is exactly what we have

[56:16] Jesus Christ is King David's lineal descendant biological offspring son a thousand years later and he is also David's Lord amazing is the only way that could happen questions or comments anybody for David's rule and reign with Christ as the vice regent there are other references but we still have time now anybody yeah talk about the kingdom come on earth and us as part of the body what will our role be in the kingdom on earth I do not know I do not know but if there's anything you want to know just ask me I really don't know exactly what it is we're going to be all I know is everyone will be gainfully involved

[57:23] I kind of feel about the millennium the way I feel about heaven and that is there are just two things that I'm really certain of one is there's going to be a lot of surprises and two is there will be no disappointments and apart from those two things I'm not too sure you just need to realize that when Jesus Christ is ruling with a rod of iron what that means quite frankly is he is ruling with strength with justice with honor corruption corruption is that thing that is killing us always has been the tendency of every institution is toward corruption every institution it was true of the nation

[58:26] Israel in the Old Testament when they got into idolatry that was corruption it was true when Christ was here on earth doing battle with the scribes and Pharisees they had corrupted Judaism they had made it to be nothing more than a burden that was placed on the people that had greater demands on the people than what God made which was ridiculous and it was corruption and the Roman Catholic Church from the time it almost began in the second third century slipped into corruption in a major way and it continued on for over a thousand years and the doctrine of justification by faith that was so prominent in the first century was completely lost and religion was reduced to rules and regulations and ritual and tradition and all that faulty role that the Pope and the Roman Catholic Church has come up with and it is corrupt through and through so Martin Luther pulled out from it and so did Wycliffe and

[59:27] Tyndale and Zwingli and these others and eventually they formed what became known as the Protestant Reformation the Protestant Church and when when these men who were referred to as the Reformers and you've got to keep in mind these were all Catholics these were Catholic men they were Catholic priests and what they wanted to reform was their own church but it didn't want to be reformed because if you subject yourself to Reformation that indicates there's something about you that's wrong but how can we be wrong because we've got everything right we've got the Vicar of Christ on earth and when he speaks ex cathedra it's just as if God himself has spoken so what's to reform and they rebelled against it so they formed the Protestant Church and out of the Lutheran Church the Protestant Church and out of that came the Church of England and out of the Church of England came the

[60:31] Methodists and the Nazarenes and the Church of God and the Presbyterians and all the rest of it and guess what they all made a beeline for the tank of corruption and the Protestant Church as a whole today as a whole the Protestant Church is just as corrupt as the Catholic Church which is just as corrupt as Judaism today and the whole thing is in a mess but it's not going to be that way when Christ straightens it out it's going to get straightened out it's going to be right yes yes yes yes during during the millennial reign of Christ there will be of course the two classes of people who will enter that and that is all of the believers who have been caught away a la 1st

[61:40] Thessalonians 4 1st Corinthians 15 the rapture of the church the translation all those believers who constitute the body of Christ are coming back with glorified bodies won't be these bodies they'll be glorified bodies not subject to death disease decay or anything which is granted very difficult to even imagine but our body Philippians tells us that our body is going to be fashioned like under the body of Jesus Christ so we are all a work in progress and we are still under construction but when that time comes we're going to be absolutely changed however there will be a number of people at the time of judgment that will be just like us just in ordinary people these will be survivors of the great tribulation period and this is the passage that Matthew 24 that

[62:40] Jesus is talking about he that endures to the end shall be saved and it's not talking about spiritual salvation it means you'll be a survivor and it's going to be they're going to be and I know this is difficult to get your brain around but it's true there are going to be billions that's with a B who are not going to survive this time of great tribulation this is why it's called that poslipsis tribulation the great one Jesus said it is a time such as the world has never seen before and will never see again one third of the world's population is going to be absolutely decimated eliminated and part of this is going to be through the evil of the antichrist part of it is going to be through natural forces they're going to be enormous incredible worldwide earthquakes that's going to result in the death of hundreds of thousands of people and just think we've had tsunamis we've had tsunamis that's wiped out 100,000 people bad as that is and this is going to be a lot worse but there will be a lot of people who will survive this time and there will be believers in these bodies who will have survived the antichrist and did not succumb to the mark of the beast the 666 and they hang on and they survive until that time and they will go into the millennium with these bodies and they will marry and they will reproduce children and there will be a lot of people born how many people

[64:28] I don't know how many we're going to start with but they're going to have a thousand years to reproduce you get a whole bunch of people in a thousand years as the old saying goes the more people you get the more people you get because it isn't adding it's multiplying and at the end of that thousand years there's going to be a huge number of people and when that happens revelation 20 says okay it's time to open the pit and the pit is open and Satan is loosed from the bottomless pit and revelation 20 says that he goes out upon the earth seeking whom he may devour first Peter 5 8 talks about that and he will have been confined for one thousand years and he is not rehabilitated he is the same old deceiver and the text says that he goes out upon the earth to deceive the nations plural because they've been multiplying for a thousand years and repopulating the earth in these bodies and it is said that when one dies at the age of a hundred he will be thought to be a child that is hearkening back to

[65:51] Methuselah the 969 this is a return to that supernatural time because the climate of the earth is going to be ideal the food of the earth is going to be ideal the environment of the earth is going to be ideal people are going to live a long time and at the end of a thousand years Satan is going to deceive once again because that's what he does best and he is going to communicate to these multitudes of people you think you've had it good for the last thousand years I'll tell you what I can get you a better deal I can get you a better deal and there are going to be those who are going to say yeah let's go with him only this time there will not be the blood bath there will not be an armageddon God is simply going to say okay zap and that will be it then they're going to be eliminated why would God do that well there are a number of things involved and one of them is he's going to demonstrate he's going to demonstrate to man that the human heart is incapable of anything but corruption and opposition to the will and the plan of God and that's going to demonstrate it once again it's going to demonstrate that

[67:10] Satan hasn't changed and that humanity hasn't changed and it's only when God puts his spirit in us and gives us that ability that we'll be able to comply with him it's a sad picture of humanity but it's a true one someone said I don't remember which one it was well it was yeah it was Luther Martin Luther someone said that in essence what we would call they were suggesting that the Pope was going to send out a hit squad on Luther to do him in well we know that he was on the run for a while and he was chasing him and they asked him how he felt about it was he worried or concerned and Luther said I fear my own flesh more than the Pope and all his cardinals he knew where the real enemy was we have met the enemy and they is us that's the picture and God loves us so much despite our being what we are that he gave himself in our place to make us more like what he is amazing other comments or questions anybody well as usual

[68:23]  I went over on my time but isn't it nice to know that there are some things you can count on okay well have a great day and I appreciate you being here and the good Lord willing I don't know what the date is but it will be whatever the last Tuesday of the month of April is and we will meet here again and I hope you'll be able to join us and feel free to invite others so you have a great day and try to stay dry safer youER