Have you ever thought much about this verse? Have you ever wondered why this verse is where it is in scripture and why Jesus uses the language here just before He goes into the second half of the Parable of the Unjust Steward?
I have and that is why I find this verse so interesting and compelling.
If we think about it this verse almost seems out of place. It really starts as the Pharisees begin to deride Jesus. v. 14. Then Jesus, after being derided, takes His turn and begins dressing down the Pharisees! Jesus chides the Pharisees right after concluding the first half of the parable of the Unjust Steward.
"You like to look good in public, but God knows your evil hearts. What this world honors is an abomination in the sight of God. Until John the Baptist began to preach, the laws of Moses and the messages of the prophets were your guides. But now the Good News of the Kingdom of God is preached, and eager multitudes are forcing their way in. But that doesn't mean that the law has lost its force in even the smallest point. It is stronger and more permanent than heaven and earth." - v. 15-17
Then comes the "coup de gras" if you will:
"Anyone who divorces his wife and marries someone else commits adultery, and anyone who marries a divorced woman commits adultery."
I was always somewhat confused about this verse and why it was there in the first place frankly but especially right before the continuation of the parable with the tale of Lazarus and the rich man.
That was until it suddenly dawned on me one day that God always likens going after spiritualism, false religion and false pagan worship as adultery. Spiritual adultery. Now God had laid down some pretty specific rules as to why He didn't want the Children of Israel to go after "strange gods." His advice was for an obviously good reason - He didn't want these people corrupted with paganism. Now coupled with the parable in Luke 16 and the story of Lazarus and the rich man and then the reasons for this verse became much clearer.
Deu 24:1 When a man hath taken a wife, and married her, and it come to pass that she find no favour in his eyes, because he hath found some uncleanness in her: then let him write her a bill of divorcement, and give [it] in her hand, and send her out of his house.
Even God had to unfortunately grant a "bill of divorce" to Israel and uphold the very law He gave to Israel because through their going after other gods and idols Israel became unclean. They became unclean because of the constant chasing and acceptance of paganism. Thus they were considered engaged in adultery and harlotry.
Jer 3:8 And I saw, when for all the causes whereby backsliding Israel committed adultery I had put her away, and given her a bill of divorce; yet her treacherous sister Judah feared not, but went and played the harlot also.
Isa 50:1 Thus saith the LORD, Where [is] the bill of your mother's divorcement, whom I have put away? or which of my creditors [is it] to whom I have sold you? Behold, for your iniquities have ye sold yourselves, and for your transgressions is your mother put away.
The books of Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Isaiah are filled to the brim of all the various forms of adultery and harlotry that Israel and Judah committed against the Lord. This adultery and harlotry was a result of accepting all the false gods and false religion and the most grotesque spiritualism of the pagan cultures around her.
Jer 3:6 The LORD said also unto me in the days of Josiah the king, Hast thou seen [that] which backsliding Israel hath done? she is gone up upon every high mountain and under every green tree, and there hath played the harlot.
Jer 5:19 And it shall come to pass, when ye shall say, Wherefore doeth the LORD our God all these [things] unto us? then shalt thou answer them, Like as ye have forsaken me, and served strange gods in your land, so shall ye serve strangers in a land [that is] not yours.
Eze 16:28 Thou hast played the whore also with the Assyrians, because thou wast unsatiable; yea, thou hast played the harlot with them, and yet couldest not be satisfied.
Eze 16:31 In that thou buildest thine eminent place in the head of every way, and makest thine high place in every street; and hast not been as an harlot, in that thou scornest hire;
It is plain to me now that the reasons Jesus lays into the Pharisees the way He does and why He considers them to be adulterer. Jesus explains what happens in the case of the Pharisees adultery in recounting the tale of Lazarus and the rich man. It is because the Pharisees had accepted another teaching. In Jesus’ recounting this story of Lazarus and the rich man it is clear that He was comparing the Pharisees own understanding of what happens in the afterlife. That understanding was derived from the neighboring pagan cultures – in this case, the Greeks.
It is the Greeks that taught that man had a “dual nature” and that man was a in possession of an immortal soul. Jesus was using the Pharisees own false belief system which was borrowed from the pagans against them. At the same time He is deriding them even further.
That is why verse 18 in Luke 16 will always and forever be to me one of the most fascinating single verses in all of scripture. It is so brilliant in it’s application with regards who it was directed at and in relation to what it concludes about these false beliefs.
"But Abraham said, `If they won't listen to Moses and the prophets, they won't listen even if someone rises from the dead.'"
The Pharisees had long before this time given up on seeking the higher meaning of God's character and instead were comfortable being their "own gods" if you will. This is even true of many Christian sects associated with the beliefs of 'modern' pagan Rome. Pagan protestantism has adopted so many of these same false beliefs.Thus both Rome and Protestantism are committing the same "spiritual adultery" that the Pharisees did.
Through the two great errors, the immortality of the soul and Sunday sacredness, Satan will bring the people under his deceptions. While the former lays the foundation of spiritualism, the latter creates a bond of sympathy with Rome. The Protestants of the United States will be foremost in stretching their hands across the gulf to grasp the hand of spiritualism; they will reach over the abyss to clasp hands with the Roman power; and under the influence of this threefold union, this country will follow in the steps of Rome in trampling on the rights of conscience.
As spiritualism more closely imitates the nominal Christianity of the day, it has greater power to deceive and ensnare. Satan himself is converted, after the modern order of things. He will appear in the character of an angel of light. Through the agency of spiritualism, miracles will be wrought,the sick will be healed, and many undeniable wonders will be performed. And as the spirits will profess faith in the Bible, and manifest respect for the institutions of the church, their work will be accepted as a manifestation of divine power.
The line of distinction between professed Christians and the ungodly is now hardly distinguishable. Church members love what the world loves and are ready to join with them, and Satan determines to unite them in one body and thus strengthen his cause by sweeping all into the ranks of spiritualism. Papists, who boast of miracles as a certain sign of the true church, will be readily deceived by this wonder-working power; and Protestants, having cast away the shield of truth, will also be deluded. Papists, Protestants, and worldlings will alike accept the form of godliness without the power, and they will see in this union a grand movement for the conversion of the world and the ushering in of the long-expected millennium. - Ellen White, The Great Controversy, page 588
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
The Fallacy of the Secret Rapture
Sadly it seems that most Christians today who preach about end time prophecies believe that prior to the end the church era true believers will be secretly raptured and flown home to heaven to escape the coming of tribulation.
This event will supposedly commence in the midst of the 70th week of Daniel 9:25-27. During this time 144,000 Jews will be converted and will rebuild a temple at Jerusalem where animal sacrifices will resume. Then these Jews will get on with the business of preaching the gospel to all the world. Of course, let's keep in mind, that the preaching of the Gospel has been going out to the entire world for centuries now.
Rapurists believe that the beast power, the mysterious antichrist figure, will then appear and make a "peace treaty" with these 144,000 Jews. After 3½ years of keeping a covenant with the Jews, the beast will break the covenant and commence 3½ years of persecution on the Jews and their converts. Finally there will be a third coming of Jesus to end it all and Jesus will rescue His people.
This is all a wildly fantastic scenario. The fact that it is pure fiction, found only in the pages of the "Left Behind" books and the fiction section of your local bookstore, and not anywhere in the pages of scripture should cause anyone even remotely interested in the truth to question this scenario.
It can be demonstrated quite clearly and distinctly from recent world history that this school of prophetic interpretation, coined "futurism," was developed by a Spanish Jesuit by the name of Manuel De Lacunza as a counter measure to the Protestant Reformation which had identified the Papacy as the Antichrist. It was later made popular by the Brethren Movement and Cyrus Scofield and the Scofield Bible. In the last 50-60 years it has become the prevailing view of many, if not most Evangelical churches. This teaching has many serious differences with the prevailing historical prophetic teaching and understanding of the Reformation and in particular Seventh-day Adventist doctrine. Some of the major flaws of this dispensational secret rapture scenario are:
1. There is second chance to believe in Jesus after His second coming if somehow one misses out on the secret rapture. This has got to be the most dangerous aspect of this doctrine.
2. The Antichrist appears after the church age era and this occurs after the church is raptured. Yet clearly scripture teaches us that even in the apostles day, as 1 John tells us, there were many antichrists in the church.
3. These end time prophecies call for the re-establishment of the State of Israel and the rebuilding of the Jewish temple. Clearly this is an extremely myopic and somewhat convoluted interpretation of scripture because so many of these prophecies are taken from prophecies that have already been fulfilled regarding Judas return from captivity in Babylon.
4. This scenario of the secret rapture 1) absolves a Christian from the necessity of preaching the word of God to modern day Jews, which, for most Christians would be practically impossible because they do not know their scriptures better than even a nominal Jew, and 2) it neglects the obvious symbolic connection between Israel, Christ's fulfillment of prophecies regarding Israel and the fact that Jesus Christ is in fact the physical embodiment of Israel.
And yet the commission to preach the three angels messages of Revelation 14:6-12 make it abundantly clear that "the everlasting gospel" is to be preached to them "that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people" and that all should "Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters." The Three Angels messages easily dispel the notion that the word of God will be preached after the church has flown away.
And it must be stressed that this admonition is something that is to be done now, not later, in anticipation and in preparation for the fall of Babylon and before the coming of the mark of the beast.
"And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive [his] mark in his forehead, or in his hand, The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:" - Revelation 14:8-9
Therefore it makes the ministry of the Seventh-day Adventist and the historic interpretation to the entire world, including modern day Jews living in that secular, nation/state of corporate ISRAEL clearly different, and vital to that of most every other church in the world. In this preaching, it has to be noted and responded to the "secret rapture" view by pointing out the following:
1. After the second coming of Jesus Christ there is no opportunity to accept Him as Lord and Savior. Outside of His second advent which will be glorious, noisy, powerful, and final there is just no second chance. It is this belief the secret rapture proponent is teaching a "fairy tale" and this can cause many to fail to follow Christ now and possibly be lost eternally. It's a harbinger of a "I'll wait and see" attitude. According to the Three Angels messages of Revelation 14:6-12 the gospel and its preaching to the entire world, which directly challenges men and women to accept Christ now, is central to this issue.
2. The Antichrist is now operating in the church and has been for many centuries. The first epistle of John makes this abundantly clear. In John's day there were antichrist's in the church. The Beast power is Papal Rome, according to a historical interpretation of Daniel and Revelation, who along with other temporal political powers and her harlot daughters is set to arise and work at the end time just as she has through the centuries.
3. At this time there is no genuine significance to the Jews as a nation fulfilling Bible prophecy. In fact, it has already been accomplished by the person of Jesus Christ. We all belong to Israel, "fellow citizen's with the saints," as a result of Jesus' sacrifice. The New Testament teaches that the Christian church is true Israel. "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus." - Galatians 3:28
The final end time battle will be fought all over the world, wherever God's people are to be found and it will center around the commandments of God and His authority as opposed to the mark of the beast system and that authority. The battle lines are clearly drawn: "Here is the patience of the saints: here [are] they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus." - Revelation 14:12. Whether the Jews rebuild a temple in Jerusalem is of no significance as the true temple of God is to be found in heaven where Jesus Christ our righteousness now dwells.
Lastly, it should be noted that this prophetic message does make those with the historic interpretation of scripture much, much different from practically every other church denomination today. It is very interesting to also note that in recent years there has been a moving away from the teachings of futurism by many prominent scholars. The movement has been more towards the historic interpretation held by the early reformers position which can only be the work of God.
It is an undeniable fact that God has commissioned all Christians in Revelation 14:6-12 to preach some great truths namely, the Gospel of Jesus Christ and His soon return and the glory of His commandments and His faith to both Christians and non-Christians alike to prepare all them "that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people" to meet Jesus when He returns.
There can be no more dangerous interpretation of scripture than the notion of a "rebuilt temple" and a "secret rapture."
This event will supposedly commence in the midst of the 70th week of Daniel 9:25-27. During this time 144,000 Jews will be converted and will rebuild a temple at Jerusalem where animal sacrifices will resume. Then these Jews will get on with the business of preaching the gospel to all the world. Of course, let's keep in mind, that the preaching of the Gospel has been going out to the entire world for centuries now.
Rapurists believe that the beast power, the mysterious antichrist figure, will then appear and make a "peace treaty" with these 144,000 Jews. After 3½ years of keeping a covenant with the Jews, the beast will break the covenant and commence 3½ years of persecution on the Jews and their converts. Finally there will be a third coming of Jesus to end it all and Jesus will rescue His people.
This is all a wildly fantastic scenario. The fact that it is pure fiction, found only in the pages of the "Left Behind" books and the fiction section of your local bookstore, and not anywhere in the pages of scripture should cause anyone even remotely interested in the truth to question this scenario.
It can be demonstrated quite clearly and distinctly from recent world history that this school of prophetic interpretation, coined "futurism," was developed by a Spanish Jesuit by the name of Manuel De Lacunza as a counter measure to the Protestant Reformation which had identified the Papacy as the Antichrist. It was later made popular by the Brethren Movement and Cyrus Scofield and the Scofield Bible. In the last 50-60 years it has become the prevailing view of many, if not most Evangelical churches. This teaching has many serious differences with the prevailing historical prophetic teaching and understanding of the Reformation and in particular Seventh-day Adventist doctrine. Some of the major flaws of this dispensational secret rapture scenario are:
1. There is second chance to believe in Jesus after His second coming if somehow one misses out on the secret rapture. This has got to be the most dangerous aspect of this doctrine.
2. The Antichrist appears after the church age era and this occurs after the church is raptured. Yet clearly scripture teaches us that even in the apostles day, as 1 John tells us, there were many antichrists in the church.
3. These end time prophecies call for the re-establishment of the State of Israel and the rebuilding of the Jewish temple. Clearly this is an extremely myopic and somewhat convoluted interpretation of scripture because so many of these prophecies are taken from prophecies that have already been fulfilled regarding Judas return from captivity in Babylon.
4. This scenario of the secret rapture 1) absolves a Christian from the necessity of preaching the word of God to modern day Jews, which, for most Christians would be practically impossible because they do not know their scriptures better than even a nominal Jew, and 2) it neglects the obvious symbolic connection between Israel, Christ's fulfillment of prophecies regarding Israel and the fact that Jesus Christ is in fact the physical embodiment of Israel.
And yet the commission to preach the three angels messages of Revelation 14:6-12 make it abundantly clear that "the everlasting gospel" is to be preached to them "that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people" and that all should "Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters." The Three Angels messages easily dispel the notion that the word of God will be preached after the church has flown away.
And it must be stressed that this admonition is something that is to be done now, not later, in anticipation and in preparation for the fall of Babylon and before the coming of the mark of the beast.
"And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive [his] mark in his forehead, or in his hand, The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:" - Revelation 14:8-9
Therefore it makes the ministry of the Seventh-day Adventist and the historic interpretation to the entire world, including modern day Jews living in that secular, nation/state of corporate ISRAEL clearly different, and vital to that of most every other church in the world. In this preaching, it has to be noted and responded to the "secret rapture" view by pointing out the following:
1. After the second coming of Jesus Christ there is no opportunity to accept Him as Lord and Savior. Outside of His second advent which will be glorious, noisy, powerful, and final there is just no second chance. It is this belief the secret rapture proponent is teaching a "fairy tale" and this can cause many to fail to follow Christ now and possibly be lost eternally. It's a harbinger of a "I'll wait and see" attitude. According to the Three Angels messages of Revelation 14:6-12 the gospel and its preaching to the entire world, which directly challenges men and women to accept Christ now, is central to this issue.
2. The Antichrist is now operating in the church and has been for many centuries. The first epistle of John makes this abundantly clear. In John's day there were antichrist's in the church. The Beast power is Papal Rome, according to a historical interpretation of Daniel and Revelation, who along with other temporal political powers and her harlot daughters is set to arise and work at the end time just as she has through the centuries.
3. At this time there is no genuine significance to the Jews as a nation fulfilling Bible prophecy. In fact, it has already been accomplished by the person of Jesus Christ. We all belong to Israel, "fellow citizen's with the saints," as a result of Jesus' sacrifice. The New Testament teaches that the Christian church is true Israel. "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus." - Galatians 3:28
The final end time battle will be fought all over the world, wherever God's people are to be found and it will center around the commandments of God and His authority as opposed to the mark of the beast system and that authority. The battle lines are clearly drawn: "Here is the patience of the saints: here [are] they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus." - Revelation 14:12. Whether the Jews rebuild a temple in Jerusalem is of no significance as the true temple of God is to be found in heaven where Jesus Christ our righteousness now dwells.
Lastly, it should be noted that this prophetic message does make those with the historic interpretation of scripture much, much different from practically every other church denomination today. It is very interesting to also note that in recent years there has been a moving away from the teachings of futurism by many prominent scholars. The movement has been more towards the historic interpretation held by the early reformers position which can only be the work of God.
It is an undeniable fact that God has commissioned all Christians in Revelation 14:6-12 to preach some great truths namely, the Gospel of Jesus Christ and His soon return and the glory of His commandments and His faith to both Christians and non-Christians alike to prepare all them "that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people" to meet Jesus when He returns.
There can be no more dangerous interpretation of scripture than the notion of a "rebuilt temple" and a "secret rapture."
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