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Mar

6

PROPHECY

Filed Under Uncategorized

OLIVET DISCOURSE

COMPOSITE FROM THE GOSPELS OF MATTTHEW (24:39-26:1)

MARKK (13:2-37), AND LUKE (21:5-36)

PREAMBLE

LUKE 1:1 Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile an account of the things accomplished among us,

LUKE 1:2 just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word have handed them down to us,

LUKE 1:3 it seemed fitting for me as well, having investigated everything carefully from the beginning, to write it out for you in consecutive order, most excellent Theophilus;

LUKE 1:4 so that you might know the exact truth about the things you have been taught.

JESUS’ TEACHING BEFORE THE

OLIVET DISCOURSE

LUKE 17:22 ¶ And He said to the disciples, “The days shall come when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it.

LUKE 17:23 “And they will say to you, ‘Look there! Look here!’ Do not go away, and do not run after them.

LUKE 17:24 “For just as the lightning, when it flashes out of one part of the sky, shines to the other part of the sky, so will the Son of Man be in His day.

LUKE 17:25 “But first He must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.

LUKE 17:26 “And just as it happened in the days of Noah, so it shall be also in the days of the Son of Man:

LUKE 17:27 they were eating, they were drinking, they were marrying, they were being given in marrriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all.

LUKE 17:28 “It was the same as happened in the days of Lot: they were eating, they were drinking, they were buying, they were selling, they were planting, they were building;

LUKE 17:29 but on the day that Lot went out from Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all.

LUKE 17:30 “It will be just the same on the day that the Son of Man is revealed.

LUKE 17:31 “On that day, let not the one who is on the housetop and whose goods are in the house go down to take them away; and likewise let not the one who is in the field turn back.

LUKE 17:32 “Remember Lot’s wife.

LUKE 17:33 “Whoever seeks to keep his life shall lose it, and whoever loses his life shall preserve it (to be fulfilled by Jews fleeing Babylon, cf. Jeremiah 51:6).

LUKE 17:34 “I tell you, on that night there will be two men in one bed; one will be taken(removal of the Church), and the other will be left.

LUKE 17:35 “There will be two women grinding at the same place; one will be taken, and the other will be left.

LUKE 17:36 [ "Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other will be left."]

LUKE 17:37 And answering they said to Him, “Where, Lord?” And He said to them, “Where the body is, there also will the vultures be gathered (in Babylon, cf. Jeremiah 50:40 and Revelation 18:2).”

COMPOSITE

A. FULFILLMENT OF DANIEL 9:26

LUKE 21:5 ¶ And while some were talking about the temple, that it was adorned with beautiful stones and votive gifts, He said,

LUKE 21:6 “As for these things which you are looking at, the days will come in which there will not be left one stone upon another which will not be torn down.”

MARK 13:3 ¶ And as He was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew were questioning Him privately,

MATT 24:3 ¶ And as He was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?”

LUKE 21:8 And He said, “See to it that you be not misled; for many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am He,’ and, ‘The time is at hand’; do not go after them (e.g., Acts 15:5; cf. Paul’s response to the churches in 49 AD—Gal. 5:12; also cf. 2 Thess. 2:2, 51 AD).

LUKE 21:9 “And when you hear of wars and disturbances, do not be terrified; for these things must take place first, but the end does not follow immediately.”

LUKE 21:10 ¶ Then He continued by saying to them, “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom,

LUKE 21:11 and there will be great earthquakes, and in various places plagues and famines; and there will be terrors and great signs from heaven.

MARK 13:8 “For nation will arise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be earthquakes in various places; there will also be famines. These things are merely the beginning of birth pangs.

LUKE 21:12 “But before all these things (i.e., Luke 21:10-11; Mark 13:8), they will lay their hands on you and will persecute you, delivering you to the synagogues and prisons, bringing you before kings and governors for My name’s sake (e.g., Acts 9:1-2; 26:2).

LUKE 21:13 “It will lead to an opportunity for your testimony.

MARK 13:10 “And the gospel (of Jesus Christ, cf. Mark 1:1) must first be preached to all the nations (fulfilled by 57 AD, cf. Romans 16:26).

MARK 13:11 “And when they arrest you and deliver you up, do not be anxious beforehand about what you are to say, but say whatever is given you in that hour; for it is not you who speak, but it is the Holy Spirit.

LUKE 21:16 “But you will be delivered up even by parents and brothers and relatives and friends, and they will put some of you to death,

LUKE 21:17 and you will be hated by all on account of My name.

LUKE 21:18 “Yet not a hair of your head will perish.

LUKE 21:19 “By your endurance you will gain your lives.

LUKE 21:20 ¶ “But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies (answer to question 1 and fulfilled in 66 AD by the Roman general, Cestus Gallus), then recognize that her desolation is at hand.

LUKE 21:21 “Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, and let those who are in the midst of the city depart, and let not those who are in the country enter the city;

LUKE 21:22 because these are days of vengeance, in order that all things which are written may be fulfilled.

LUKE 21:23 “Woe to those who are with child and to those who nurse babes in those days; for there will be great distress upon the land, and wrath to this people,

LUKE 21:24 and they will fall by the edge of the sword, and will be led captive into all the nations; and Jerusalem will be trampled under foot by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.

MATT 24:9 “Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you, and you will be hated by all nations on account of My name.

MATT 24:10 “And at that time many will fall away and will deliver up one another and hate one another.

MATT 24:11 “And many false prophets will arise, and will mislead many.

MATT 24:12 “And because lawlessness is increased, most people’s love will grow cold.

MATT 24:13 “But the one who endures to the end, he shall be saved.

MATT 24:14 “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world for a witness to all the nations, and then the end shall come (to be fulfilled in accordance with Matthew 28:18-20).

B. FULFILLMENT OF DANIEL 9:27

MATT 24:15 ¶ “Therefore when you see the abomination of desolation which was spoken of through Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place [let the reader understand],

MATT 24:16 then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains;

MATT 24:17 let him who is on the housetop not go down to get the things out that are in his house;

MATT 24:18 and let him who is in the field not turn back to get his cloak.

MATT 24:19 “But woe to those who are with child and to those who nurse babes in those days!

MATT 24:20 “But pray that your flight may not be in the winter, or on a Sabbath;

MATT 24:21 for then there will be a great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever shall.

MATT 24:22 “And unless those days had been cut short, no life would have been saved; but for the sake of the elect those days shall be cut short.

MATT 24:23 “Then if anyone says to you, ‘Behold, here is the Christ,’ or ‘There He is,’ do not believe him.

MATT 24:24 “For false Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect.

MATT 24:25 “Behold, I have told you in advance.

MATT 24:26 “If therefore they say to you, ‘Behold, He is in the wilderness,’ do not go forth, or, ‘Behold, He is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe them.

LUKE 21:25 ¶ “And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and upon the earth dismay among nations, in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves,

LUKE 21:26 men fainting from fear and the expectation of the things which are coming upon the world; for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.

MATT 24:27 “For just as the lightning comes from the east, and flashes even to the west, so shall the coming of the Son of Man be.

MATT 24:28 “Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.

LUKE 21:28 “But when these things begin to take place, straighten up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”

MATT 24:29 ¶ “But immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken,

MATT 24:30 and then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky (answer to question 2), and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory.

MATT 24:31 “And He will send forth His angels with a great trumpet and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other.

MATT 24:32 ¶ “Now learn the parable from the fig tree (and all the trees, Luke 21:29—answer to question 3): when its branch has already become tender, and puts forth its leaves (fulfilled in 1978 AD), you know that summer is near; (The fig tree is a symbol for the Levitical priesthood. Priests began training at about 30 years old, cf. Ezekiel 1:1. This would mean that the priests were born around 1948—the year of Israel’s Declaration of Independence.)

MATT 24:33 even so you too, when you see all these things, recognize that He is near, right at the door.

MATT 24:34 “Truly I say to you, this generation (a biblical generation is about 70 years long, Psalm 90:10) will not pass away until all these things take place.

MATT 24:35 “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words shall not pass away.

MATT 24:36 “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.

MATT 24:37 “For the coming of the Son of Man will be just like the days of Noah.

MATT 24:38 “For as in those days which were before the flood they were eating and drinking, they were marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark,

MATT 24:39 and they did not understand until the flood came and took them all away; so shall the coming of the Son of Man be.

MATT 24:40 “Then there shall be two men in the field; one will be taken, and one will be left.

MATT 24:41 “Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken, and one will be left.

MATT 24:42 “Therefore be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming.

MATT 24:43 “But be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known at what time of the night the thief was coming, he would have been on the alert and would not have allowed his house to be broken into.

MATT 24:44 “For this reason you be ready too; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will.

LUKE 21:34 ¶ “Be on guard, that your hearts may not be weighted down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of life, and that day come on you suddenly like a trap;

LUKE 21:35 for it will come upon all those who dwell on the face of all the earth.

LUKE 21:36 “But keep on the alert at all times, praying in order that you may have strength to escape all these things that are about to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.”

MARK 13:33 ¶ “Take heed, keep on the alert; for you do not know when the appointed time is.

MARK 13:34 “It is like a man, away on a journey, who upon leaving his house and putting his slaves in charge, assigning to each one his task, also commanded the doorkeeper to stay on the alert.

MARK 13:35 “Therefore, be on the alert– for you do not know when the master of the house is coming, whether in the evening, at midnight, at cockcrowing, or in the morning–

MARK 13:36 lest he come suddenly and find you asleep.

MARK 13:37 “And what I say to you I say to all, ‘Be on the alert!’”

C: JESUS’ COMMENTS TO ISRAEL REGARDING HIS RETURN

MATT 24:45 ¶ “Who then is the faithful and sensible slave whom his master put in charge of his household to give them their food at the proper time?

MATT 24:46 “Blessed is that slave whom his master finds so doing when he comes.

MATT 24:47 “Truly I say to you, that he will put him in charge of all his possessions.

MATT 24:48 “But if that evil slave says in his heart, ‘My master is not coming for a long time,’

MATT 24:49 and shall begin to beat his fellow slaves and eat and drink with drunkards;

MATT 24:50 the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour which he does not know,

MATT 24:51 and shall cut him in pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites; weeping shall be there and the gnashing of teeth.

MATT 25:1 “Then the kingdom of heaven will be comparable to ten virgins, who took their lamps, and went out to meet the bridegroom.

MATT 25:2 “And five of them were foolish, and five were prudent.

MATT 25:3 “For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them,

MATT 25:4 but the prudent took oil in flasks along with their lamps.

MATT 25:5 “Now while the bridegroom was delaying, they all got drowsy and began to sleep.

MATT 25:6 “But at midnight there was a shout, ‘Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’

MATT 25:7 “Then all those virgins rose, and trimmed their lamps.

MATT 25:8 “And the foolish said to the prudent, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’

MATT 25:9 “But the prudent answered, saying, ‘No, there will not be enough for us and you too; go instead to the dealers and buy some for yourselves.’

MATT 25:10 “And while they were going away to make the purchase, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding feast; and the door was shut.

MATT 25:11 “And later the other virgins also came, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open up for us.’

MATT 25:12 “But he answered and said, ‘Truly I say to you, I do not know you.’

MATT 25:13 “Be on the alert then, for you do not know the day nor the hour (cf. Luke 12:35-48).

MATT 25:14 ¶ “For it is just like a man about to go on a journey, who called his own slaves, and entrusted his possessions to them.

MATT 25:15 “And to one he gave five talents, to another, two, and to another, one, each according to his own ability; and he went on his journey.

MATT 25:16 “Immediately the one who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and gained five more talents.

MATT 25:17 “In the same manner the one who had received the two talents gained two more.

MATT 25:18 “But he who received the one talent went away and dug in the ground, and hid his master’s money.

MATT 25:19 “Now after a long time the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them.

MATT 25:20 “And the one who had received the five talents came up and brought five more talents, saying, ‘Master, you entrusted five talents to me; see, I have gained five more talents.’

MATT 25:21 “His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave; you were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things, enter into the joy of your master.’

MATT 25:22 “The one also who had received the two talents came up and said, ‘Master, you entrusted to me two talents; see, I have gained two more talents.’

MATT 25:23 “His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave; you were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’

MATT 25:24 “And the one also who had received the one talent came up and said, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed.

MATT 25:25 ‘And I was afraid, and went away and hid your talent in the ground; see, you have what is yours.’

MATT 25:26 “But his master answered and said to him, ‘You wicked, lazy slave, you knew that I reap where I did not sow, and gather where I scattered no seed.

MATT 25:27 ‘Then you ought to have put my money in the bank, and on my arrival I would have received my money back with interest.

MATT 25:28 ‘Therefore take away the talent from him, and give it to the one who has the ten talents.’

MATT 25:29 “For to everyone who has shall more be given, and he shall have an abundance; but from the one who does not have, even what he does have shall be taken away.

MATT 25:30 “And cast out the worthless slave into the outer darkness; in that place there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

MATT 25:31 ¶ “But when the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne.

MATT 25:32 “And 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;

MATT 25:33 and He will put the sheep on His right, and the goats on the left.

MATT 25:34 “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.

MATT 25:35 ‘For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in;

MATT 25:36 naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me.’

MATT 25:37 “Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, and feed You, or thirsty, and give You drink?

MATT 25:38 ‘And when did we see You a stranger, and invite You in, or naked, and clothe You?

MATT 25:39 ‘And when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’

MATT 25:40 “And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.’

MATT 25:41 “Then He will also say to those on His left, ‘Depart from Me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels;

MATT 25:42 for I was hungry, and you gave Me nothing to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me nothing to drink;

MATT 25:43 I was a stranger, and you did not invite Me in; naked, and you did not clothe Me; sick, and in prison, and you did not visit Me.’

MATT 25:44 “Then they themselves also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not take care of You?’

MATT 25:45 “Then He will answer them, saying, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’

MATT 25:46 “And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

MATT 26:1 And it came about that when Jesus had finished all these words, He said to His disciples . . .

COMMENTS ON THE COMPOSITE’S CONSTRUCTION AND SOURCE

The Composite is taken from the New American Standard Bible, 1995.

Major Composite Section Headings have been inserted for clarity.

The foregoing composite relies heavily upon Luke’s ordered organization of the material in his gospel presentation.

No Discourse subject material has been omitted; however, duplications of the same material have been eliminated. For example, Jesus’ comments about the permanency of His words recorded in all three gospels have been reported only once in the composite.

Bold type and underlining have been added to some words and phrases for emphasis.

Parenthetical information has been inserted in the text as an aid to understanding the Discourse.

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Feb

20

The Rapture

Filed Under Uncategorized

TWO BIBLICAL GENERATIONS IN THE HISTORY
OF MODERN ISRAEL
DEUTERONOMY 29:22-30:6

Dedicated to the Holy Trinity—to the Father for His plan for His elect, to the Son who makes the plan reality, and to the Spirit who teaches the plan to the elect.

PREFACE

For those of us living in a fast-paced generation, we like our news in succinct sound bytes. So wading through a 6,000-word essay is uninviting. Therefore, let me summarize the 6,000 words by the good news that we are living in a generation that will likely experience the rapture of the church—based on evidence from the scriptures and recent history. For those who enjoy digging into details, continue to read on—potentially a bit onerous, but nevertheless scripturally and factually sound.

Introduction
Mentioning the pending return of the Lord Jesus for His church sometimes causes believers to roll their eyes. Yet, the biblical record provides the framework, as well as encouragement, for an accurate chronological anticipation of His return. This essay will highlight the biblical evidence for the timeline leading to the Lord’s coming for His church. The timeline will be developed from the scriptures by pinpointing two pivotal generations in the history of modern Israel. In turn, believers will be reassured that eager anticipation of the church’s rapture is appropriate. Furthermore, some of the confusion will be dispelled that surrounds alternate end-times scenarios that have been offered for discovering the end of the age.

An Overview
Before becoming immersed in details, it might be helpful to provide an overview of Deut. 29:22-30:6 so one can grasp the outline into which all the details of this extraordinary passage fit.
Astounding as it may seem, this 3,400 year-old Bible verse—Deut. 29:22—is actually a hinge that links two generations of Jews in history the of modern Israel.
The first generation was a generation of Jewish unbelievers (in Jesus) both inside and outside the land of Palestine. God consigned this generation to make preparations for the repopulation and reclamation of what had become a desolate wasteland due to His curse. The second generation was that which God assigned to occupy the land and make preparations for the coming of His Messiah as King. The two generations are contiguous as will be shown later from Matthew’s Gospel.
History’s events from the outset to the end of God’s land curse were never recorded in the Old Testament because God kept them temporarily secret from the nation Israel. This period may be given the secular label of the “Church Age.” Although held secret from nation Israel by God, Jews and gentiles that are church members can interpret from the New Testament scriptures, and from historical events as well, the meanings of the prophetic details from Deut. 29:22-30:6 about what was happening in the land.
The following analysis from God’s word, as well as from the historical events He has and is orchestrating, reveal the secrets kept from the nation Israel until their pending spiritual revival.

Definitions For Biblical Generations
Writers of the Bible used the word generation in different ways. For our study, two of those ways are important. The first important use of generation was to designate a company of contemporary people by some common attitude, behavioral trait, or unusual event.
For example, the children of Israel that Moses led out of Egyptian bondage were actually comprised of people of all ages. That generation received God’s miraculous provisions for its escape, and His sustenance for both physical and spiritual needs. Yet that generation was characterized by a common attitude and behavioral trait that caused God to refer to them as a loathsome generation (Ps. 95:10).
A second example was recorded by Matthew in his gospel. A certain duplicitous group of Pharisees and Sadducees, likely comprised of men born in various years, challenged Jesus to show them a sign. And the Lord labeled that obdurate contingent of Israeli leaders as, “An evil and adulterous generation (emphasis mine) . . .” (Matt 16:4).
The second use of generation was to designate a portion of the population that had the same birth year. For example, upon Israel’s exodus from Egypt, God ordered an initial census of Israel’s warriors from twenty-years old and upward—meaning they would all have had the same birth year (Num. 1:1-3). Moses then referred to this same contingent of warriors as a generation—a generation that perished within a thirty-eight year stretch following the census, just as the Lord had sworn would happen (Deut. 2:14-16).
The length in years of a biblical generation varied depending upon one’s birth before, or immediately following, the flood. The flood may have caused significant atmospheric changes with resultant adjustments to conditions affecting life expectancy on earth, perhaps eventuating in the dramatic decrease of centuries from the pre-flood life expectancy. In any event, when life had normalized under post-flood conditions, Moses defined the number of years in an average generation as follows: “As for the days of our life, they contain seventy years (emphasis mine) . . .” (Ps. 90:10).
A seventy-year life expectancy explains conclusively God’s judgment upon the specific wilderness-wandering generation coming out of Egypt by the premature passing (at fifty-eight years old for the youngest) of Israel’s warriors. Had that generation of warriors lived to the ripe old age of seventy, their deaths would not have been recognized as God’s judgment. The warrior Joshua was, of course, an exception.
Some confusion has resulted from the psalmist’s reporting God’s words about Israel’s wilderness experience: “. . . For forty years I loathed [that] generation . . .” (Ps. 95:10). Some have taken this to mean that a biblical generation was forty years long. However, the forty-year period in the wilderness was God’s judgment for spying out the land—one year in the wilderness for every day of spying (Num. 14:33-34). The forty years did not refer to the generation’s life expectancy.
To summarize: one use of the biblical word generation was to refer to contemporaries by a noteworthy characterization. The second important use of generation was to identify a segment of any population as having the same birth year with a typical life expectancy of seventy years. Sometimes these two uses were combined. The biblical context in which the word generation is found assists in discovering which use the writer intended. This study will adopt these biblical protocols in using the word generation.

Definitions Of Generations Used In This Essay
Because of the several times the word generation appears in this essay with specificity, an epithet that characterizes a particular Jewish generation will be affixed each time the word is so used for the purpose of mitigating confusion. The epithets thus affixed are: the “wilderness” generation; the “Jesus” generation; the “homeland” generation; and the “rapture/tribulation” generation. The approximate time periods in which the generations lived: the wilderness generation, 1476 BC to 1406 BC; the Jesus generation, 5/4 BC to 66 AD (the date believers escaped the Roman ravage of Jerusalem); the homeland generation, 1878 AD to mid-1948 AD; and the rapture/tribulation, mid-1948 AD to 2018 AD.
A note of clarification: the split epithet “rapture/tribulation” refers to a single generation of Jews, part of which is raptured in the church and the other part that experiences the tribulation to become the Jewish-populating contingent in the Messianic Kingdom (aka the Millennium). Some of the rapture/tribulation generation originates from the Diaspora. Immigration to the land takes place in two phases: one, an initial gathering after statehood was established; and two, a final gathering for the Kingdom.

God’s Covenant With Israel In Moab: Predictions About The Homeland Generation
Having learned two biblical meanings for the word generation, we will next learn about two generations of modern-day Israel. The first generation, the homeland generation, is the generation of Jews who worked toward establishing a Jewish homeland starting in the 19th century. The second generation is the rapture/tribulation generation.
Ironically, the homeland generation was the subject of a prophecy God gave Moses only days before the children of Israel—the wilderness generation—entered the land for the first time in the 15th century BC. Therefore, keep in mind the homeland generation is not the same as the wilderness generation. However, the homeland generation is the first in a sequence of two consecutive generations that end with the Lord’s return at the end of the age.
Just before the sons of Israel entered the land under Joshua’s leadership, God commanded Moses to make a covenant that complemented the covenant He had made with Israel at Horeb. One of the remarkable aspects of this covenant made across the Jordan in Moab was God’s predictions recorded in Deut. 29:22-30:6. It might be helpful to keep in mind that the predictions were presented in the following sequence: an effect, the cause of that effect, and the resolution of that effect. The “effect” was utter desolation of the land of Israel. The “cause” was Israel’s unfaithfulness to God. The “resolution:” a Jewish generation from the Diaspora assigned by God to begin reclamation of the land.
Several features of God’s predictions help to identify accurately the six specific parties that He referred to in His prophecy. To simplify our study, we will label the six parties in order of their appearance in the prophecy: the homelanders; the foreigner; the inquirers; the commentators; the uprooter; and the re-gathered. Because of the novelty of this interpretation, the analysis leading to party identification will proceed verse-by-verse.
The prophecy began with an introduction to two parties who were on the verge of making a joint observation and subsequent announcement. God referred to the first party as “. . . the (emphasis mine) generation to come, your sons who rise up after you (the original wilderness Jews to enter the land) . . .” (Deut. 29:22). Five identifying first-party features included a generation that would be:
• unique, underscored by the article “the” attached to the common noun “generation,”
• a generation future to the wilderness generation,
• of Israeli origin,
• in the land when observing the land’s then-current desolate condition, and
• comprised of a contemporary company encompassing a population with various birth years, but having a significant characteristic that would recognizably mark that generation as unique in Israel’s history.
God referred to the second party as “. . . the foreigner who comes from a distant (emphasis mine) land . . .” (Deut: 29:22). Three identifying features of the second party were:
• a foreigner that would clearly be a co-resident with the first party in the land of Israel,
• a foreigner from a single country rather than a multi-national force, and
• a foreigner from a distant land rather than a land bordering on, or nearby to, the land of Israel.
The joint observation of parties one and two would focus on God’s past treatment of the land.
The joint communiqué from the two parties would give specific details of their land observations after all the land had experienced God’s wrath (Deut. 29:23).
Note: the plagues and diseases of the land, described as like the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim, resulted from every curse upon the land triggered by the anger of the Lord (Deut. 29:23, 27). Nowhere in the post-Moses historical or prophetical Old Testament writings is such a description ever applied to the land. Therefore, this description must apply to a period not covered by those biblical texts—a period during which, “The secret things belong to the Lord . . .” (Deut. 29:29).
A third party was next introduced in God’s prophecy. The third party was identified as “. . . all (emphasis mine) the nations . . .” (Deut 29:24). The third party would be readily discerned as the sum total of nations privy to the collaborative communiqué about the land evaluation. However, what is noteworthy is that all the nations would exist in a forum such that—with a single voice—they raise a single question: “Why has the Lord done thus to this land?” (Deut. 29:24).
A nondescript fourth party would provide the answer to this single question. Although unidentified, this fourth party would provide an answer reflecting scriptural literacy. The answer would provide the real reason for the land’s desolation: God assessed upon the land every curse written in the five books of Moses due to Israel forsaking the covenant, and because of its idolatry (Deut. 29:25-27).
In addition to this accurate answer to the question, the fourth party would also provide information allowing identification of yet another party.
This fifth party would:
• have uprooted a former Israeli generation from their land,
• have deported those sons of Israel into another land,
• this other land would not be the distant land from which the foreigner of Deut. 29:22 came, and
• results of the deportation would continue and exist on the very day the unidentified fourth party provided the accurate reason for God’s wrath that caused deportation from, and desolation of, the land (Deut. 29:28).
Subsequently, what amounts to a parenthetical comment answered the implied question, “What events will take place between the deportation, and the distant foreigner’s presence in the land?” The answer to the implied question: “. . . the secret things belong to the Lord our God . . .” (Deut. 29:29). Or, in other words, those things that will happen between the deportation from the land and partial restoration to the land will not be revealed in the Old Testament.
History has recorded more than 18 centuries elapsed between the deportation and initial restoration.
Ignoring the chapter division between Deut. 29:29 and 30:1, one observes that Moses noted a spiritual revival among Diasporal Jews followed by God’s re-gathering them to the land, and their possession of the land accompanied by prosperity and historic multiplication (Deut. 30:1-6). Here is the sixth group in the Moabitic predictions—the re-gathered.
Note: spiritual revival of Jews in the land likely follows God’s defeat of an invasion by a Russian coalition (cf. Ezek. 39:7). Therefore, context may well support the suggestion that the generation experiencing God’s re-gathering to the land would follow immediately the unique homeland generation referred to in Deut. 29:22. If this assumption is accurate, the homeland generation would be adjoined by the rapture/tribulation generation.

The Parties In God’s Moabitic Prophecy
At this point, it would be appropriate to identify (through the lens of fulfilled prophecy from an historical context) those parties God referred to in Deut. 29:22-30:6. Remember, the labels for the six parties are—in order—the homelanders, the foreigner, the inquirers, the commentators, the uprooter, and the re-gathered.
Unlocking the prophecy begins with the identity of the distant foreigner resident in the land. Recall the foreigner was from a distant land, and occupied the land together with the unique Israeli generation—the homeland generation. Recent history suggests the foreigner was most likely from the distant land of Britain. Some scripture students speculate Tarshish—Jonah’s intended flight haven—was part of the British Isles. If accurate, this could mean the distant land mentioned by God was not unfamiliar to Jews of later generations, but was known to them as Tarshish.
The British had authority over Palestine under the League of Nations’ Palestine Mandate of July 1922. British authority lasted for 28 years, until the Palestine Mandate was effectually terminated in May of 1948 under UN Resolution 181. Upon British withdrawal, the unique Israeli homeland generation of God’s Deuteronomic prophecy came to a recognizable and time-stamped end. Therefore, 1948 marked the birth year of a new generation of indigenous, native-born, Israeli citizens, many of whom were offspring of immigrant Jews from the unique homeland generation.
The Israeli generation was also unique because it reinvigorated reclamation of the land and witnessed Israel’s Declaration of Independence in May 1948. Using the 70-year lifespan of a biblical generation, this unique generation began around 1878. That was the year Benjamin Disraeli (aka Lord Beaconsfield), first and only Jewish prime minister of Britain, was head of Britain’s delegation to the Congress of Berlin.
One of the issues considered at the Congress was equal rights for Romanian Jews. In addition, Judah Leib Gordon, Jewish poet laureate from Vilna (Lithuania), prepared a memo proposing the creation of a Jewish state in Palestine for consideration by the Congress. This bold proposal was never incorporated into the resulting Treaty of Berlin. However, the Treaty of Berlin did become foundational for Jewish homeland arguments in succeeding decades.
In 1891, American restorationist (aka a Christian Zionist) William Blackstone used the Treaty of Berlin’s provisions as a backdrop to petition US President Benjamin Harrison to support restoration of Palestine to the Jews. What made that homeland generation unique was it had lived during the historically formative years leading up to the re-establishment of a national homeland for the Jews, had experienced a partial re-population of the land, and had initiated concerted efforts to reclaim the land from its centuries of waste conditions.
In 1917, the British government’s Balfour Declaration called outright for establishing a homeland for the Jews. The Balfour Declaration was presented by Britain’s Foreign Secretary (Arthur James Balfour) to Baron Rothschild, a leader of the Jewish community in Britain, for transmission to the Zionist Federation of Great Britain and Ireland—an organization started in 1899 to campaign for a Jewish homeland.
Disraeli, Gordon, and Rothschild were but a tiny sample from the “. . . the sons who rise up after you . . .” referred to by Moses at Moab (Deut. 29:22).
Another component of God’s prophecy—the “interrogators” as labeled in this analysis—was that “all the nations” would join in an inquiry about the Lord’s reason for causing the land’s desolation (Deut. 29:24). The League of Nations comprised a forum in which all the nations “would question” with a single voice about the land’s conditions as witnessed in the aforementioned Palestine Mandate—just as God had predicted (Deut. 29:24). And as a totally secular organization, the League would not recognize Israel’s culpability in rejecting God’s Messiah that led to His land curse.
The scripturally literate “commentators,” with the correct answers for the interrogators, might well have been Christian Zionists who, between 1878 and 1948, supported, petitioned, and worked unstintingly for a national homeland for the Jews in Palestine. This suggestion is based on the supposition that the Jewish inhabitants of the land were likely dead spiritually—unless they were Hebrew Christians. Spiritually dead Jews would not be aware—or wouldn’t admit—the reasons for the land’s condition. As noted, secularists in the League of Nations certainly wouldn’t know the reason; if they knew, no reason would exist for their question. But Christian Zionists would definitely know the answer to the question because they were biblicists who interpreted the scriptures literally—particularly Deut. 29:25-27.
The desolate condition of the land began in 70 AD when Titus took captive Jewish citizens of the Jesus generation, alluded to in His prophecy in Luke 13:1-5 (also see Dan. 9:26). Titus was “the uprooter” who took thousands of those Jewish citizens to Rome—“another land” (Deut. 29:28). God likely used the adjective, another, to distinguish the captives’ destination from the distant land of the foreigner’s origin. Titus effectively and forcibly dissolved the Jewish state—conditions that existed until May 1948.
Furthermore, the commentators’ answer regarding the land’s condition, as well as the Jews’ being uprooted, noted that God’s wrath continued until “today” (Deut. 29:28). After May 15, 1948, the state of Israel was reconstituted, thus marking the end of “the [Jewish homeland] generation” that God had highlighted at the outset of His predictions. After the establishment of a Jewish homeland through the May 15, 1948 Declaration of Independence, the situation described as “until today” ceased to exist.
A compelling current-day vignette ties the 1948 inhabitants of the land with their fathers uprooted to Rome by Titus in 70 AD. Titus’ younger brother, Domitian, had constructed a triumphal arch on the Via Sacra located just southeast of the Forum Romanum. For centuries, Jews living in Rome had refused to travel beneath that arch because it was constructed to commemorate the sacking of Jerusalem and the temple. However, in 1948 living Jewish descendants in Rome marched publicly under the arch in the direction toward Jerusalem—opposite to the direction their ancestors had sometimes been forced to march throughout the centuries.
To summarize:
• the homelanders were the last generation to inhabit the land as Jewish aliens, as well as Jews in the Diaspora that worked unremittingly to establish a Jewish homeland,
• the foreigner was the British administration operating under the Palestine Mandate (history testifies to the significant impact the British had in matters related to securing a homeland for the Jews),
• the land-condition interrogators were the League of Nations’ members,
• the commentators explaining the land’s desolation were Christian Zionists,
• the uprooter was Titus taking Jews captive to Rome in 70 AD, and
• the re-gathered were Diasporal Jews that would populate the Messianic Kingdom.

God’s Covenant With Israel In Moab: Prophecy About The Rapture/Tribulation Generation
The second generation to be addressed by Moses at Moab was introduced in Deut. 30:1-6. This second generation may be identified by its dual returns from the Diaspora, and be characterized as the rapture/tribulation generation. This generation’s first return was at the beginning of the nation’s reestablishment (cf. Ezek. 38:8, 12). The second return (Deut. 30:1-6) was at the end of this generation leading into the Messianic Kingdom (see Isa. 11:11 for confirmation of a second return to the land).
Several factors may be observed that relate to the second generation from this section in Deuteronomy. The generation
• experienced the final expressions of God’s blessings and cursings (likely including the tribulation and Jesus’ second coming),
• reflected upon God’s dealings with the nation,
• lived in the Diaspora and not in the land,
• underwent a spiritual revival that took place among Diasporal families,
• participated in a second restoration from captivity to the land of Israel (the first restoration this generation experienced was in unbelief when Israel declared independence), and
• began a life of unparalleled prosperity and reproduction under the New Covenant in the Messianic Kingdom.
From the above six items, the following deduction may be drawn. In the latter-years experience of this second generation, God’s curse on the land had been drawn to a close. This fact is confirmed by the prophet Ezekiel wherein Jews “. . . gathered from many nations . . .” inhabit “. . . the mountains of Israel which had been (emphasis mine) a continual waste . . .” (Ezek. 38:8, 12). The mountains of Israel had been reclaimed from the effects of God’s curse upon the land by the first contingent of this generation that had returned to the land in unbelief. As mentioned above, the twofold recovery of God’s people from the Diaspora is confirmed by the prophet Isaiah.
At this point, it is appropriate to remind the reader of the name characteristic of the second generation: the rapture/tribulation generation. The rapture/tribulation generation is suitable because the generation will have been exposed to the vicissitudes of life under the tribulation preceded by the rapture of the church.
The events of the tribulation may have put the Diasporal members of this generation in a reflective mood, comparing the devastating effects of the tribulation with the similar effects—in a more limited and local sense—of God’s curse upon the land of Israel referred to in Deut. 30:1.
Some of the first contingent of the rapture/tribulation generation, although originally in the land in unbelief, will likely undergo spiritual revival prior to, and during, the tribulation (see Ezek. 38:23; 39:7 for prediction of the onset of Israel’s spiritual revival in the land).
The second contingent of Diasporal Jews that remain outside the land until the end of the tribulation is likely comprised of those for whom Jesus dispatched disciples under the Great Commission (Matt. 28:18-20) when the kingdom gospel will be preached throughout the whole world as a testimony to all the nations, some of which would have Diasporal Jews as citizens (Matt. 24:14).
Finally, both Jewish components of the rapture/tribulation generation—those initially in the land that reclaimed the waste places and those spread throughout the nations in the Diaspora—will be combined in a single kingdom under the New Covenant (Deut. 30:6). Provisions of God’s New Covenant with the nation Israel are discussed by the prophets Jeremiah (Jer. 31:31-34) and Ezekiel (Ezek. 36:23-28).
Ignoring the chapter division between Deuteronomy 29 and 30, one discovers that “. . . when all these things have come upon you (the rapture/tribulation generation that succeeds the homeland generation) . . .” (Deut. 30:1), i.e., the curse of the Lord upon the land, and “. . . you call them to mind (emphasis mine) . . .” (Deut. 30:2) in the Diaspora (implying, of course the spiritual revival among Diasporal Jews), “. . . then the Lord will restore you from captivity . . . and gather you again (emphasis mine) from all the peoples . . .” (Deut. 30:3-6). This second gathering likely involves the generation succeeding the homeland generation and is that alluded to by the prophet Isaiah as inaugurating the Messianic Kingdom following restoration of the remnant (again, cf. Isa. 11:11 for a second re-gathering). God made the prediction of the Messianic Kingdom to Moses in Moab (Deut. 30:6, that refers to New-Covenant life of the Kingdom implying existence of the Kingdom).
Both the homeland generation and the rapture/tribulation generation had in common sharing the effects of God’s curse upon the land. The early settlers before Israel’s Declaration of Independence worked on land reclamation under the Palestine Mandate of 1922. The early settlers arriving just after the Declaration also began doing land reclamation projects that reached completion—ending the effects of God’s land curse—by the time of the invasion of the Russian coalition (see Ezek. 38:1-39:16 for an outline of the invasion preceded by an end to land reclamation). Revival among Diasporal Jews will likely be partially due to Jews from Israel fulfilling the Great Commission in accordance with Jesus prediction in His Olivet Discourse.

A Review
The crux of Deut. 29:22-28 is the condition of the land. As mentioned above, the land-desolation curse began in 70 AD (cf. Dan. 9:26).
God gave the Jews responsibility for reversing the curse’s effect upon the land. God used the homeland generation of the Jews, the British, two international organizations, and Christian Zionists to establish, once again, a homeland for the Jews in Palestine. One of the initial tasks of the new citizens was to reclaim the land from the effects of God’s curse.
As God’s curse ran its course, and as Israel’s national status became a reality, God began to return the rapture/tribulation generation from many nations to the land. The initial return of this generation from the Diaspora was in unbelief. Their first assignment: continue to restore the land’s productivity.
However, a second and more significant task: secure Jerusalem and begin preparations for temple worship. Near the end of the rapture/tribulation generation, spiritual revival will break out in Israel, followed by the spread of revival to the members of the rapture/tribulation generation still in the Diaspora.
A world-wide tribulation will ensue. And finally, God will again return people from the rapture/tribulation generation to the land from the Diaspora—this time in belief—to begin citizenship in the Messianic Kingdom.
The specific nature of God’s land curse was never addressed in Harton’s comprehensive review of all the biblical allusions and fulfillments of Deut. 28—30 (see End Note 2). In Deut 29:23, God’s curse was directed toward the land—not upon His people—and is never alluded to nor fulfilled in the scriptures.
The land curse was not universal in nature as was the general curse by God upon the planet after the Fall, and that curse will probably be lifted in the Messianic Kingdom. Harton assigned lifting of the land curse to the Messianic Kingdom (Harton, 245), whereas Ezekiel pointed to a pre-messianic period for the curse’s removal (cf. Ezek. 38:8, 12).
Citing Baron (a book originally published in 1905), Harton recorded the land’s occupants during the Jewish Diaspora as the “. . . Romans, Persians, Saracens, Crusaders, Mamelukes, Tartars, and Turks,” (Harton, 225). To that 1905 list must be added the British, following the Palestine Mandate from the League of Nations in 1922.

New Testament Confirmation: Generations Homeland And Rapture/Tribulation Are Contiguous
Clearly, Jesus tied a specific generation to the end of the age in His Olivet Discourse (Matt. 24:31).
Jesus was God’s prophet that He had promised Moses (Deut. 18:20, and validated in John 6:14). Therefore, the Lord was likely quite familiar with Deut. 30:1-6. Early in the Olivet Discourse (Matt. 24:14), Jesus certainly pointed to the end of the age: “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world (emphasis mine, whereby some Diasporal Jews would come to faith) for a witness to all the nations, and then the end shall come.” He then followed with the warning of great, world-wide tribulation (Matt. 24:21). Next, the Lord related that following His second coming, He would “. . . send forth His angels with a great trumpet and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other” (Matt. 24:31). So Matt. 24:14, 31 referred to the exact same generation as Deut. 30:1-6. Let’s see if that generation Jesus pointed to in Matt. 24:14, 31 can be tied more specifically to the generation of Deut. 30:1-6.
After the tribulation and gathering-of-the-elect portions of His sermon that addressed Jews who would populate the Kingdom, Jesus addressed Hebrew Christians by alluding to the rapture of the church (Matt. 24:32-41). This gives credence to the epithet for this generation as the “rapture/tribulation generation.”
Remember, in His Olivet Discourse, Jesus gave a specific sign for the rapture/tribulation generation to determine the end of the age by referring to it as this generation (Matt. 24:34). He did so through His parable of the budding fig tree (Matt. 24:32-35). The symbol of the fig tree represented the Levitical priesthood (priests and Levites). The fig tree budding meant revival of the Levitical priesthood.
On Passover and Sukkot of 1978, seminars were held in Jerusalem for training priesthood candidates in the order of the priest’s services and associated rituals.
God had given the Levites—who belonged to God in place of Israel’s first-born males—to Aaron to help in the ministry of the tabernacle (Num. 3:12). God set the age at which the Levites would enter service at 30, and ordered a census of Levi’s descendants among the wilderness generation. The census meant that generation of Levites all had the same birth date.
Years later, King David reduced that age to 20. However, it appears that the priest Ezekiel observed God’s original directions by beginning his ministry at 30 years old (Ezek. 1:1, 3). Furthermore, John the Baptist (a priest by descent, and about 6 months older than Jesus, Luke 1:5, 36, 56) as well as Jesus (a priest according to the order of Melchizedek, Heb. 5:6) began their respective ministries at about 30 years old (Luke 3:23). The age of 30 years is significant.
The fig tree budded in 1978, suggesting the generation of the priests entering training at 30 years old would have been born around 1948—the year marking the end of the homeland generation and the beginning of the rapture/tribulation generation. The two generations adjoin. The fig tree had budded exactly 30 years after Israel’s reconstitution in a Jewish homeland. This would make the priests and Levites part of the succeeding generation. The succeeding generation of Jews inhabiting the land has been labeled the “rapture/tribulation generation” because they will experience both events—the rapture and tribulation—leading up to the end of the age.
This generation will likely be
• the first generation of Jews since 70 AD that have possession of the land,
• the one immediately following the homeland generation,
• would see the effects of God’s curse upon the land come to an end,
• the one experiencing the invasion of the land by the Russian coalition,
• would experience two gatherings to the land, one in unbelief and the other in belief bringing the Diaspora to an end,
• the one in which the rapture takes place,
• the one that would experience the tribulation, and
• the one witnessing Jesus’ second coming and the inauguration of the Messianic Kingdom.
So scripture and history show the rapture/tribulation generation is contiguous to the homeland generation.
Following Moses’ definition of a 70-year generation, the priests’ generation will terminate around 2018. This year is probably a good indicator of when gentile domination of Jerusalem will come to an end.

Rapture Of The Church
In a mid-seventies lecture to underclass students at Dallas Theological Seminary, then President John Walvoord announced reservedly his belief that the church’s rapture was likely to occur in his listeners’ lifetimes. Dr. Walvoord quickly followed up on his comments by suggesting that no one should visit the registrar’s office to initiate withdrawal from seminary in anticipation of the event.
About the same time as Walvoord’s lecture, Dorothy Miller began an “. . . eighteen-year struggle to adjust some of my prophetic beliefs to the Word of God.” In a reasoned, thoughtful analysis, Miller argued persuasively that God had the writers of Scripture record sufficient prophetic knowledge to discover the rapture’s approach at God’s appointed time.
From a recent essay detailing the interpretive meanings of the seven churches in The Revelation of Jesus Christ—Chapters two and three—it was proposed that the historic church in Sardis represented a Diasporal messianic-Jewish congregation of the rapture/tribulation generation. In that message to Sardis, Jesus warned the congregational leader that if he didn’t wake up, he wouldn’t know the time of the rapture (Rev. 3:3). By an unavoidable implication, if the Sardian leader were to awake from his spiritual stupor, he would know the time of the rapture. Therefore, Jesus fully expected believers living in the rapture/tribulation generation to know the timing of the rapture.
In fact, four of Jesus’ disciples asked Him—just days before His death and resurrection—to tell them the sign for the end of the age (Matt. 24:3). Jesus answered their request using a parable featuring a fig tree (Matt. 24:32; remember, the fig tree is a symbol for the Levitical priesthood).
Earlier in His ministry, Jesus had informed His disciples that parables were designed to fulfill an Isaianic prophecy predicting continued ignorance of God’s plans for Israeli unbelievers. However, God would grant discerning believers insight into His plans through diligent study of the parables (Matt. 13:10-17). Thus, the parable Jesus gave for the end-of-age sign was crafted to reveal to believers who would be raptured, and living in a generation with an unbelieving Israeli population, a signal for discovering God’s timing of the end of the age. The end would be preceded by rapture of the church (cf. Rev. 3:10 wherein Jesus promised protection, for a post-rapture Jewish believer living on earth, from the upcoming world-wide tribulation thereby confirming the rapture precedes the tribulation). Note: Jesus giving the end-of-age sign in a parable would only have meaning with unbelieving Jewish citizens resident in Israel. This scenario fits perfectly the nation Israel.
Jesus’ cloud-enveloping ascension was described by Luke in Acts 1:9, where the “cloud” may well describe the Shekinah glory rather than some atmospheric anomaly. Angels commented on Jesus’ ascension thusly: He “. . . will come [back] in just the same way (emphasis mine) as you [the disciples] have watched Him go into heaven” (Acts 1:11). Jesus’ return for His church—the rapture—has the same cloud-enveloping feature that will replicate His ascension (1 Thess. 4:17).
Jesus’ appearance on a white horse followed by armies, described in Rev. 20:11-16, is in stark contrast to the scene at the rapture of the church. The horse and armies most probably describe the Lord’s “second-coming” event as King of the earth. Therefore, three decades after Jesus’ ascension, when the great apostle to the gentiles wrote his true child in the common faith that he, Titus, should look for the “. . . blessed hope and the [re]appearing of the glory (emphasis mine, reminiscent of the Shekinah glory at Jesus’ ascension) of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus” (Titus 2:13), Paul was referring specifically to the rapture (cf. 1 Thess. 4:17 connecting the rapture specifically with clouds).
Unreservedly, unabashedly, Paul encouraged his spiritual son to eagerly wait for the rapture—not shutter in skepticism bordering on disgust. Paul’s unapologetic directive to Titus becomes truly meaningful and appropriate today for our generation that is witnessing worldwide adjustments foreshadowing His [re]appearance.

Parallels Between The Jesus Generation And The Rapture/Tribulation Generation
A remarkable chronological similarity exists between believing Jews of the Jesus generation and of the rapture/tribulation generation as to God’s judgment of Jerusalem. Peter raised the issue in his sermon at Pentecost when he warned, “Be saved from this (emphasis mine) perverse generation!” (Acts 2:40).
The Jesus generation, rightly referred to by Peter as a perverse generation, began in the winter of 5/4 BC. The judgment Peter warned against began about 70 years later in 66 AD when the Roman army under the command of Cestus Gallus surrounded Jerusalem (Fruchtenbaum, 439). The believing Jews escaped Jerusalem’s judgment as reported by the 2nd century Jewish believer Hegisippus (ibid., 212). That escape occurred within that generation’s lifetime of 70 years.
In a strikingly similar parallel in timing, the rapture/tribulation generation was instructed to flee Jerusalem’s judgment about the year 2018—seventy years from its birth within the nation Israel in 1948. This similarity shows the consistency, over time, that a biblical generation is 70 years.

Summary And Conclusion
The homeland generation of Deut. 29:22 ended in 1948 with the declaration of a Palestinian homeland for the Jews when the British “foreigner” departed the desolated land. The historical record shows that the homeland generation was followed immediately by another generation—gathered from the nations—a generation that continued restoration of the land confirmed by Ezekiel’s prophecy (Ezek. 38:8, 12). This new generation (Deut. 30:1-6) was labeled the rapture/tribulation generation from which Diasporal Jews were again gathered to the land in the latter years to become citizens in the Messianic Kingdom (Deut: 30:1-6, as confirmed by Jesus’ prophecy in His Olivet Discourse, particularly the parable of the fig tree in Matt. 24:32). The fig tree symbolized the Levitical priesthood which was revived in Jerusalem in 1978 as the historical record has indicated.
Using the biblical seventy-year length of a generation, the Messianic Kingdom will be inaugurated around 2018 at the end of the rapture/tribulation generation.
Rapture of the church will precede the seven-year tribulation by about a year. The rapture portends being in the presence of the Lord, an event that should elicit great joy from many of His saints throughout the age.

END NOTES

[1] All biblical citations and quotes are taken from the New American Standard Bible—NASB, 1995.

[1] Harton, George M. Fulfillment of Deuteronomy in History and Eschatology 28—30. ThD Dissertation, Dallas, TX: Dallas Theological Seminary, 1981, 96-215, for suggested fulfillments in ancient Israel’s history.

[1] Four ways are reported in Bauer, W., Danker, F. W., Arndt, W. F., and Gingrich, F. W. A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and other Early Christian Literature, 3^rd ed., Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2000, 191-192.

[1] Ibid., 191.2.

[1] Harton, 75-93, features a discussion on the hermeneutics of prophetic interpretation. Particularly important is Harton’s position—with buttressing citations—that Deut. 28:68 is an example of a single-fulfillment prediction, 82-83. In this context, Deut. 29:22 is very likely also a single-fulfillment prediction.

[1] Waltke, Bruce K. and O’Connor, M. An Introduction to Biblical Hebrew Syntax. Winona Lake, IN: Eisenbraus, 1990, 242, provides biblical examples for a common noun (e.g., generation) combined with the definite article as designating a unique referent. So “the generation” of Deut. 29:22 is a unique or particular generation.

[1] Roughly estimated at 480,000 Jews before 1948 (from Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics). http://www.cbs.gov.il/shnaton58/download/st04_04.xis.

[1] For an excellent discussion about the historical significance of the 1948 date, see “The Re-establishment of Israel:” Fruchtenbaum, Arnold G. The Footsteps of the Messiah. Tustin, CA: Ariel Ministries Press, 1983, 65.

[1] Considering the pivotal role the Levitical priesthood enjoys in this study, the following biographical sliver for Disraeli is most interesting. Although his father had Benjamin baptized in the Church of England at 13, he was a proud Sephardic Jew of Italian descent who held that Christianity was “completed Judaism” (perhaps wise politically, but theologically foolish). During a heated 1935 debate in Parliament with Irish MP Daniel O’Connell, Disraeli said, “Yes, I am a Jew and when the ancestors of the right honourable gentleman were brutal savages in an unknown island, mine were priests (emphasis mine) in the temple of Solomon.” http://www.victorianweb.org/history/pms/dizzy.html

[1] For a helpful thumbnail sketch highlighting this historic period of modern Israel’s birth, and the importance of the Treaty of Berlin, see: Gold, Dore. The Fight for Jerusalem. Washington, DC: Regnery Publishing, 2007, 119-143. Gold has served as Israel’s ambassador to the UN, and as an advisor to an Israeli prime minister.

[1] See Fruchtenbaum, 436-437, for a details of this period, particularly from 1914-1917.

[1] The first gathering was roughly estimated at 2,900,000 from 1948 to 2006 by Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics. http://www.cbs.gov.il/shnaton58/download/st04_04.xis

[1] Deut. 30:4 and Matt. 24:31 describe the same singular event in Israel’s history—as unmatched as was Moses leading the wilderness generation out of Egypt. Matt. 24:31 refers to the rapture/tribulation generation.

[1] The intensive pronoun “this” singles out grammatically the noun “generation” in a demonstrative way. (cf. Dana, H.E. and Mantey, Julius R. A Manual Grammar of the Greek New Testament. Toronto, Ontario: The Macmillan Company, 1927, 130, § 138(2). It is thus translated as a demonstrative by all English translators.

[1] See Biblical Prophecy and the Rapture. McClymont, J. C. March 7, 2008. http://www.mcclymont.org/?cat=20 and The Rapture/Tribulation Generation. McClymont, J. C. July 6, 2007. http://www.mcclymont.org/?p=13 God had planted the priesthood (fig tree) in the “vineyard” of the nation Israel (Num. 1:47-4:49 and Luke 13:6-9). Jesus’ symbolic cursing of the fig tree, coupled with His subsequent stoppage of temple sacrifices (Mark 11:12-21), reflected God’s judgment on the Levitical priesthood—a judgment that will be terminated in the Messianic Kingdom (cf. Jer. 33:18). The judgment also set the stage for Jesus’ own Melchizedekian priesthood (cf. Heb. 5:10) when He would become both high priest and sacrifice on the cross.

[1] One example, among several, that covered this revival story and noted the 1978 date: Levine, Charley J. “Getting Ready, A Very Special Yeshiva,” Hadassah Magazine, December 1981, 19, 36. Levine (by name, a descendant from the tribe of Levi) was Director of Zionist Affairs for Hadassah.

[1] Miller, D. A. Forbidden Knowledge, Or Is It? updated ed. Fountain Valley, CA: Joy Publishing, 1998, vii.

[1] See Revelation, Chapters 2-3. McClymont, J. C. August 17, 2008. http://www.mcclymont.org/?cat=16 This is a novel historic-prophetic interpretation that proposed two modern Messianic congregations ( Thyatira in Rev. 2:25 and Sardis in Rev. 3:3) that would be witness to—by being part of—the rapture of the church.

[1] For a discussion about the theological doctrine of the rapture’s imminency, see Imminency, Parts I, II, and III. McClymont, J. C. February 7 and 8, 2008. http://www.mcclymont.org/?cat=19

[1] Compare Wallace, Daniel B. Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1996, 325.B.1 for a definition of the demonstrative pronoun “this” singling out the word “generation” in a special way.

[1] For the dates of Jesus’ chronology, see Hoehner, Harold W. Chronological Aspects of the Life of Christ. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1977, 27.

[1] All biblical citations and quotes are taken from the New American Standard Bible—NASB, 1995.

[1] Ibid., 191.2.

[1] Roughly estimated at 480,000 Jews before 1948 (from Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics). http://www.cbs.gov.il/shnaton58/download/st04_04.xis.

[1] See Fruchtenbaum, 436-437, for a details of this period, particularly from 1914-1917.

[1] The first gathering was roughly estimated at 2,900,000 from 1948 to 2006 by Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics. http://www.cbs.gov.il/shnaton58/download/st04_04.xis

[1] Miller, D. A. Forbidden Knowledge, Or Is It? updated ed. Fountain Valley, CA: Joy Publishing, 1998, vii.

[1] For a discussion about the theological doctrine of the rapture’s imminency, see Imminency, Parts I, II, and III. McClymont, J. C. February 7 and 8, 2008. http://www.mcclymont.org/?cat=19

[1] For the dates of Jesus’ chronology, see Hoehner, Harold W. Chronological Aspects of the Life of Christ. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1977, 27.

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Dec

2

Filed Under Uncategorized

A MISSIONS CREDO
“A Slave To All So That I May Win More”

Introduction
Sometimes mentioned as one of the basic “indispensables” of missionary qualifications is servanthood. The biblical texts cited to support this claim are 1 Cor. 9:19-23 and Phil. 2:7-9. However, these texts do not point to unbelievers as the objects of servanthood, and therefore do not apply to mission activity among the lost. The following essay will show that the apostle Paul’s comments in both letters were in fact describing his admonition to, and work of, servanthood among members of the church.

Jesus As Servant Of The Lord
Paul’s letter to all the saints at Philippi recounted certain aspects of Christ Jesus’ incarnation. Christ Jesus “. . . emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name” (Phil. 2:7-9, New American Standard Bible—NASB, 1995). Paul admonished the Philippian saints to have a similar attitude as that exemplified by Jesus—an attitude of humility and concern for other believers, but not that of being a servant to humankind.
Although God had several servants, among whom were Abraham, Moses, and the nation Israel, Paul was clearly referring in his Philippian letter to Jesus as the Servant of the Lord (cf. Isa. 42:1). To suggest from the incarnation reference in Philippians that, during His earthly ministry, Jesus became the servant, or slave, to all people is probably extending His servanthood well beyond Paul’s intended meaning.
Some might argue that Jesus’ foot-washing example in the upper room showed He indeed became servant to the Satan-controlled unbeliever Judas (John 13:2-16). However, Jesus’ foot washing may be accurately described as a symbol of God’s forgiveness that led to salvation for the eleven, as well as a public demonstration of Jesus’ own personal forgiveness of Judas. In any case, after the foot washing, Jesus acknowledged that He was indeed Lord—not a bond-servant.

Four Kinds Of Believers Within the First-Century Church
The first-century church was comprised of at least four kinds of believers: one, Jews without any particular party affiliation; two, Pharisees or Law-keeping Jews; three, gentiles—both proselytes to Judaism as well as plain pagans; and four, Jews that had developed a conscience about indulging in some gentile practices. So Paul’s becoming a slave “to all” likely meant a slave “to all kinds of” believers that made up those four groups.
Typical examples from each group were: group one, Peter (Acts 10:9-16); two, John Mark (Col. 4:10-11); three, the proselyte Nicolas (Acts 6:5) and Sergius Paulus (Acts 13:7, 12); and four, the unnamed that Paul referred to in 1 Cor. 8:1-13 and Rom. 14:1-23.
The likelihood is quite strong that some among these four kinds did not fully comprehend God’s salvation. For example, some believing Pharisees believed the Law must be kept (Acts 15:5). Others, like “the weak” Paul mentioned in 1 Cor. 9:22, had already been identified by the apostle in 1 Cor. 8:11 as “. . . the brother (emphasis mine) for whose sake Christ died.” Obviously, the “weak” brother in 1 Cor. 8:11 is part of the same group of believers Paul works to win from wounded consciences in 1 Cor. 9:22. Such believers were all objects of Paul’s stated goal of ‘winning more’ in 1 Cor. 9:19-23.

The Word “Win”
The word “win” may be used in reference to both believers and nonbelievers. Jesus used the very word, applying it to a brother who obviously was a believer (Matt. 18:15). Since the weak in 1 Cor. 9:22 refers to the same weak brother in 1 Cor. 8:11, Paul also used the word “win,” as Jesus had, to refer to believers.

Winning More Vs. Saving Some
While one may concede that the word “win” can be applied to both believers and unbelievers, what about the word “save” that Paul used in the same context as becoming “all things to all men” (i.e., 1 Cor. 9:22)? One need only consult Paul’s letter to his child in the faith—Timothy—to discover that “save” may also apply to believers, like Timothy himself. Paul wrote to Timothy, “Pay close attention to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in these things, for as you do this you will save (emphasis mine) both yourself and those who hear you” (1 Tim. 4:16, author’s translation).
According to Paul, one already saved can also become saved. This reality is most pronounced among believers whose lives are dominated by the control of indwelling sin. The Pharisees who had believed, but were seeking righteousness by keeping the Law, are a prime example of believers that needed to be won, or saved. by accepting God’s salvation promise of liberty (cf. Acts 13:39). Paul may have become as one under the Law for the four men “zealous for the Law” (Acts 21:20-24) to “win those under the Law” (1 Cor. 9:20).

Paul As A Slave To All
The only place in the scriptures that the apostle mentioned becoming “a slave to all” was in 1 Cor. 9:19. The word for “slave” is the same word translated elsewhere in Pauline writings as “bond-servant.” In 2 Cor. 4:5, Paul stated that Timothy and he were “. . . your (emphasis mine) bond-servants for Jesus’ sake.” The plural possessive pronoun, your, has as antecedent, “. . . the church of God which is at Corinth with all the saints who are throughout Achaia” (2 Cor. 1:1). Since Paul was addressing the same readers in both Corinthian letters, the probability is high that he was a servant to all kinds of believers in Corinth—and elsewhere as well, one might add. Therefore, Paul meant believers only when he said, “your bond-servants.” Consequently, Paul never intended his readers at Corinth to understand he had become a slave to unbelievers for the purpose of winning unbelievers to a saving faith in Christ.

Conclusion
A brief survey of the scriptures has clearly demonstrated that the doctrine espousing the believer’s need to become “. . . all things to all men (emphasis mine) . . .” (1 Cor. 9:22) is erroneous when believers are exhorted to become servants to unbelievers during missionary endeavors.

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Sep

8

Modern Missions Mania

Filed Under Missions

Matthew 28:16-20, author’s translation

“But the eleven disciples proceeded to Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had designated. And when they saw Him, they worshipped [Him]; but some were doubtful. And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, ‘All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go, therefore, and make disciples in all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I, Myself, have commanded you; and remember, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.’”

Introduction

A portion of Matthew’s report from the mountaintop has become known throughout recent church history as the Great Commission. To help grasp the overwhelming church-wide emphasis placed present day on this piece of scripture, one needs only to reflect on the contemporary sentiments of a renowned Bible expositor and pastor. He holds the Great Commission is the focal point of all scripture. Further, he goes on to lament the misunderstanding of God’s people about the Great Commission’s significance, and their unwillingness to fulfill it. He concludes the unfulfilled Great Commission is the only reason the church remains on earth.

One reason for church saints’ misunderstanding and confusion about the critical importance God allegedly places on the Great Commission is that Jesus’ commands to “Go . . . and make disciples . . .” appear only in one place in the entire New Testament—at the very end of Matthew’s gospel. For example, the epistles are completely silent about Jesus’ injunction.

One might conjecture that such an important command would be repeated often, or at least alluded to, in the rest of the New Testament. Some with missionary fervor have noticed this anomaly of silence, and have speculated that the Great Commission’s great significance has been propagated throughout the ages by oral tradition, or by implication from the rest of scripture rather than by direct apostolic reference. Therefore, the Lord did not deem it necessary to have His spokesmen mention the Great Commission again.

However, an explanation other than oral tradition and implication may account for the Commission’s solitary mention by Matthew. Jesus’ disciples understood from their mountaintop experience that His commands did not apply to them. Nor did it apply to the church formed some weeks later at Pentecost.

Seven issues need to be resolved before one can accurately comprehend Jesus’ Commission-encapsulated instructions to His disciples. Resolution of these seven issues clearly presents a scriptural understanding for the New Testament’s silence about the Great Commission in letters to local churches and their leaders, as well as for the Commission’s dormancy in saints’ lives. The seven issues are: Jesus’ ‘heads-up,’ the disciples’ doubt, disciple making, disciple makers’ curricula, baptism and the baptismal formula, Jesus’ presence at the age’s end, and Paul’s missionary endeavors.

A “Heads-Up” for Jesus’ Disciples

Just weeks before Jesus gave His post-resurrection Great Commission in Galilee, He sat on the Mount of Olives across from the temple and delivered what has become known as The Olivet Discourse. The discourse may be divided into two sections. The first section was His prophecy about what would take place from the time of His death and resurrection to the 70 A.D. destruction of Jerusalem. The second section was His prophecy related to events of the Tribulation that would take place between the rapture of the church and His Second Coming. The Great Commission passage is actually a parallel passage, but in more detail, to Jesus’ statement about the kingdom gospel and all nations in His Olivet Discourse.

On the Mount of Olives, Jesus gave His disciples a one-sentence ‘heads-up’ on what would take place during the period from the church’s rapture to His Second Coming. He said, “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world for a witness to all the nations, and then the end shall come”—the end being a permanent halt to gentiles trampling Jerusalem underfoot terminated by Jesus’ return. Without question, preaching the kingdom gospel to all the nations was addressed in further detail through the Great Commission. So the Commission relates to a generation that will see the Second Coming, and not to the immediate generation of Jesus’ disciples in Galilee.

The Disciples’ Doubt

At Jesus’ clear and direct instructions following His resurrection, eleven disciples of the original twelve headed to Galilee, to a particular mountain designated by the Lord. Upon their arrival, Jesus appeared on the mountain. All eleven disciples worshipped Him as King even though some of the eleven were doubtful.

Some commentators believe that all the eleven disciples were doubtful. However, skilled, articulate, and knowledgeable grammarians point out from word use that only a portion of the eleven disciples was doubtful. Further, most English translations read, “some doubted.” The question then arises, “About what, exactly, were some doubtful?”

Doubt had run rampant among most of Jesus’ disciples after His crucifixion. On the third day following His death, the news of His resurrection spread haphazardly among His followers. At least one of the disciples was so skeptical that he earned for himself the nickname ‘doubting Thomas’ because of skepticism and doubt upon hearing the resurrection news. But Jesus had proceeded to effectively resolve all doubts in dramatic and thorough fashion so that, when the disciples set off for Galilee per His command, uncertainty about the reality of His life beyond the grave had been removed beyond doubt. Yet, when some saw Him on the mountain, they were doubtful, but not about His resurrection.

To understand the cause of their doubt, we recall that the Lord Jesus entrusted three of His disciples with a special vision—a vision that He ordered them not to communicate to the others until after “the Son of Man had risen from the dead.” Those three disciples followed Jesus’ orders to the letter.

But after Jesus’ resurrection—and probably on the way from Jerusalem to the Galilean mountain—the three, no doubt, eagerly and openly discussed with the other eight their experience of something extraordinary that had happened previously on a particular mountain quite possibly located in Galilee—that “holy mountain,” as Peter referred to it. Peter, James, and John had witnessed “the Son of Man coming in His kingdom,” something referred to as the Transfiguration. So it’s possible the three’s account met with doubts.

Peter likely addressed skeptical responses to the Transfiguration report. He said, “We [Jews] have an altogether reliable thing—the prophetic word.” In other words, if anyone doubts our eyewitness accounts of what took place on that holy mountain, he can consult God’s word for reassurance. The ‘prophetic word’ likely referred to Daniel’s prophetic vision wherein he saw one like a son of man coming up to God and receiving from Him dominion and glory as well as a universal and everlasting kingdom.

Peter concluded Jesus was the Son of Man in Daniel’s vision Who received the kingdom from God. The Transfiguration experience eliminated any doubt from Peter’s mind that Jesus was King. Since He was also Israel’s Messiah, the kingdom Jesus received is sometimes called the Messianic Kingdom.

Remember, Elijah was present on the Mount of Transfiguration. God had promised, according to Malachi’s prophecy, to send Elijah as a missionary and herald to the nation Israel before the King inaugurated the kingdom. And Moses was also present on that holy mountain, the one born outside the land that God had sent to bring His people out of Egypt (a pseudo-diaspora) and into the land He had promised to the fathers. Peter’s reaction to the vision shows all doubts were dispelled about who was King on that mountain, so he offered to build three Sukkot booths—a certain indication that he, as a Jew, expected the King to immediately launch His kingdom. So perhaps Moses and Elijah exemplify Jewish activity leading up to His return as King.

Now, back to the mountain in Galilee where the group of eleven was then standing—perhaps the very mountain where the Transfiguration had taken place (some believe Mt. Tabor in Galilee was where the Transfiguration took place). The Transfiguration, either by personal experience or by a doubt-free acceptance of the recent eyewitnesses’ reports, naturally divided the group of eleven in two: those who had no doubt Jesus was King, and those who found it difficult to accept what other eyes had seen, and other ears had heard—like Thomas with Jesus’ resurrection. Since the three eyewitnesses unreservedly worshipped the King on the Galilean mountaintop, based on their prior personal experience and subsequent understanding, the others instinctively followed the trio’s lead. But some had nagging doubts.

Not having the benefit of seeing the vision firsthand, nor hearing the voice of the Majestic Glory announcing His pleasure with His beloved Son, some of the disciples very likely had doubts about the kingdom’s status. The doubts probably went something like this: “If He is coming in His kingdom, why are we worshipping up on this mountain in Galilee instead of at post-coronation festivities in Jerusalem?”

To assuage their doubts on that Galilean mountain, and to reassure them that kingdom matters were going along according to God’s will, “Jesus came up and spoke to them [the doubters], saying, ‘All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.’” Jesus thereby asserted that He was indeed the “Son of Man” in the prophet Daniel’s vision, Who, “. . . came up to the Ancient of Days and was presented before Him. And to Him was given dominion . . . and a kingdom . . .” Jesus’ reassurances for the doubters amounted to Him saying, ‘My Father made Me permanent King of everything; it’s OK to believe the Transfiguration accounts despite the Jerusalem leaders demanding, and being granted, My crucifixion.’

Our analysis has suggested that those doubts of some of Jesus’ disciples arose because, even though the King was present, the anticipated kingdom was nowhere to be seen in a form that corresponded to revelations made by Israel’s prophets. Nevertheless, they worshipped Him, even in the face of their doubts. Against that Messianic Kingdom backdrop, and in accordance with His position as King, Jesus issued The Great Commission.

In such a context, the Great Commission’s goal would be to fill the ranks of gentile citizens in the Messianic Kingdom as well as the ranks of Jewish citizens from both the nation, and the Diaspora—hence the command to go into all nations. The word ‘Diaspora’ refers to Jews living in gentile nations.

One further point is worthy of note. During Jesus’ post-resurrection ministry, the major topic of discussion with His disciples was the kingdom.

Prophetical Significance of the Galilean Mountain

In his superb book about the sequence of prophetic events, Dr. Arnold G. Fruchtenbaum discusses the significance of the mountains of Israel mentioned in Ezekiel 39:1-4 (Fruchtenbaum, Arnold G. The Footsteps of the Messiah. Tustin, CA: Ariel Ministries Press, 1983, p. 75). Ezekiel revealed an invasion of Israel by a Russian coalition from the north. In that revelation, God declared directly to the invading armies that, “You shall fall on the mountains of Israel . . .” (Ezek. 39:4).

Fruchtenbaum points out that the mountains of Israel “extend the length of the center of the country beginning at the southern point in the Valley of Jezreel at the town of Jenin in Galilee (emphasis mine) . . .” (op. cit., p. 75). Further, Fruchtenbaum notes that until the Six Day War of 1967, “all of the mountains of Israel, except for a small corridor of West Jerusalem, were entirely in the hands of the Jordanian Arabs,” concluding the stage has now been set for the prophecy’s fulfillment (op. cit., p. 75).

A significant event will then happen upon those mountains. God will make known His holy name (Yahweh) in the midst of His people Israel, and the nations will know that He is the Lord, the Holy One in Israel (Ezek. 39:7). Could it be that Jesus’ post-resurrection commission to the eleven—on the designated mountain in Galilee—to go into all the nations and make disciples was based upon Ezekiel’s prophecy, and intended for a future generation?

Disciple Making

Here is an interesting New Testament statistic: the words disciple/disciples are found 224 times in the gospels, 30 times in Acts, and 0 times in the epistles and Revelation. What might one discover from this precipitous drop-off in word usage as the chronology in the New Testament progressed? One might say that emphasis on disciple making decreased dramatically as the nature of the church was revealed.

To elaborate on this point, the word ‘disciple’ identified an individual who assumed the long-term responsibility of learning from a specific teacher. In the gospels, John the Baptist had disciples. Jesus was addressed by the title, ‘Rabboni,’ which meant ‘teacher.’ Hence, Jesus had identifiable students who became known as His disciples. Why, even Moses had disciples! Since John the Baptist had disciples, and Jesus had disciples, at least two distinct disciple groups sprouted, and were identified by their respective teachers. After Jesus departed, who would assume His role as ‘Teacher?’

The apostle John likely pointed to the Teacher Who would take Jesus’ place. John informed his local church audience, “As for you, the anointing [the Holy Spirit] which you received from Him [Jesus] abides in you, and you have no need for anyone to teach you . . .” So while teachers existed in the churches, the Spirit likely replaced Jesus in His role of personal Teacher. In the epistolary literature, therefore, no one was ever instructed to ‘make disciples’ because all had the indwelling Holy Spirit’s personal ministry.

As the church’s nature began to unfold after Jesus’ departure, it became apparent that no distinction was to exist among church disciples (even though the church was omni-national) as had been experienced between Jesus’ disciples and John’s disciples. In fact, the apostle Paul admonished the Corinthians because each one was saying, “I am of Paul,” and “I am of Apollos,” and “I am of Cephas,” and “I am of Christ.” Such Corinthian claims may well have highlighted the practice of claiming a certain superiority by virtue of the one with whom he identified himself in the hierarchy of personal teachers—Christ being the preeminent one.

Paul’s argument against this practice was conveyed by the simple question, “Has Christ been divided?” The church became a unified entity wherein no one stood above another, or even claimed self-aggrandizing distinctions. Hence, the word ‘disciple’ may have lost relevancy in the church and stopped being used. In place of ‘disciples,’ the terms ‘brethren’ and ‘saints’ came into vogue. The plethora of traveling church teachers may also have resulted in fewer saints assuming the responsibility of learning from the necessarily abbreviated ministry of a specific traveling teacher, and so they were no longer called disciples. Finally, as a corpus of letters from itinerant teachers accumulated in, and were circulated among, local churches; preachers using those epistolary resources replaced disciple makers.

Some wish to infer that the other gospel writers alluded to Jesus’ sentiments given to the eleven on the mountain in Galilee. However, inspection of what the other gospel writers said shows that not even one echoed Jesus’ specific instructions to the eleven.

The foregoing review suggests that Jesus’ command, “to make disciples in all nations,” may not have been directed to the eleven disciples of His generation, but perhaps to a future generation. That may explain why the words ‘preach,’ ‘proclaim,’ and ‘witness’ were popular among those of Jesus’ generation when referring to the ministry. Not one of the gospel writers, or any of the epistle authors, repeated Jesus’ command to “make disciples.” Matthew is the only one who records this particular command because his gospel was written to Jews to explain the status of the kingdom—both present and the future.

For an example in the future, Jews in the land during Elijah’s ministry will likely become Elijah’s disciples, and Jews in the Diaspora (as well as gentiles) will probably be discipled by some of the 144,000 ‘sealed’ Jews referred to in Revelation.

The Disciple Makers’ Curricula

Per instructions, disciple making was to begin with baptism upon belief in the gospel. The gospel would highlight the nearness of the kingdom of God, and that repentance for forgiveness of sins was obligatory for kingdom citizenship. The Baptist had proclaimed this gospel. Jesus, Himself, emphatically echoed the Baptist’s gospel of the kingdom from the outset of His ministry until the Pharisees blasphemed the Holy Spirit. This kingdom gospel may be differentiated from the church gospel. The kingdom gospel addressed national Israel as separate from all other nations as well as individual citizens from those national entities, while the church gospel addressed people from all nations, including some from Israel, as a single entity.

Matthew made it abundantly clear by his word choice that the content of what the disciple makers were to teach was everything Jesus Himself had commanded the eleven disciples. Emphasis on the commands that Jesus alone had taught the eleven limited the teaching curricula of His Commission. For example, rabbinic traditions alluded to in the gospels would not be taught to disciples, nor would Pharisaic practices. Jesus’ teachings from the Sermon on the Mount would be especially pertinent in the curricula of kingdom disciples. But probably church doctrine, briefly sketched in the gospels and explicitly developed in the epistles, would be marginalized. Because of similarity to Daniel’s prophecies, the material in The Revelation of Jesus Christ would also be properly included in the content of teaching material for disciples of the tribulation generation—that generation living between the church’s rapture and the Lord’s second coming.

From our vantage point of a completed canon, we can clearly discern that Jesus’ instructions about teaching content in fulfilling the Great Commission—content limited to what He personally had commanded during His earthly ministry—could not logically apply to the church. For example, Jesus revealed to Paul several unique details of church doctrine not included in His earthly-ministry commands. These details were later recorded in the apostle’s epistles, and would prove essential to spiritual growth and maturity of Jesus’ body—the church—but would have little value to tribulation disciples.

Baptism and the Baptismal Formula

It might be helpful to review the practice of baptism. John’s baptism was intended to mark publicly the moment when a Jew of the believing remnant removed himself from that generation of Jewish nationals facing judgment. This became known as John’s baptism. Following Pentecost, the believing Jewish remnant was baptized in Jesus’ name to identify Jews in the church as distinct from Jews in the rest of Israel. Gentile converts were immediately baptized in Jesus’ name in public recognition that they did not have to become proselytes to Judaism to become part of the church.

Jesus’ Great Commission instructed that disciples be baptized in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Yet one of the more tantalizing facts of the New Testament is that there is no record of anyone ever being baptized in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit! On the day of Pentecost, Peter commanded that those baptized with the Holy Spirit be baptized in the name of Jesus. The same name of Jesus was used for the believing Samaritans’ baptism, as it was for the baptism of Cornelius and those gentiles assembled at his house.

One might note that the Great Commission instructed baptism in the name of the Deity for those disciples that were in nations outside Israel. Thus, a more rigorous test of the correct baptismal formula for the church might be converts made beyond Israel’s borders. And we have just such a test case. In Ephesus—well beyond Israel’s boundaries—the apostle Paul found about twelve men who were John the Baptist’s disciples. After Paul instructed them about Jesus, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus, not the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Furthermore, it is likely they no longer retained the sobriquet of John the Baptist’s disciples.

It is unequivocal that Peter, one of the very disciples who heard firsthand Jesus’ Great Commission, consistently disregarded Jesus’ commandment, as did Paul, the apostle sent by Jesus to the gentiles (e.g., Ephesus). What might account for this blatant and consistent violation of Jesus’ instructions? Close scrutiny of the baptism formula itself may help resolve the apparent disregard for our Lord’s commandment.

Let’s start by asking the question, “What is the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit?” The description, “the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,” is not a proper name but a description of the Deity’s fullness. This is somewhat analogous to the use of the name ‘Pharaoh’ for Amenhotep II of Exodus fame; ‘Pharaoh’ is not a proper name, but likely a title for Egyptian rulers. The Exodus monarch’s proper name was actually Amenhotep II. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit might function as the Deity’s full title.

So what is the proper name of Israel’s Deity? The answer to this question takes us back to Moses and the burning bush. Most are familiar with the story. The angel of the Lord (probably the pre-incarnate Christ) appeared to Moses in a blazing fire from the midst of a bush. The Lord identified Himself to Moses and eventually said, “. . . I will send you to Pharaoh [ruler of the gentile nation Egypt] so that you may bring My people, the sons of Israel, out of Egypt.”

Anticipating His peoples’ response, Moses posed the scenario: “Behold, I am going to the sons of Israel, and I will say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you.’ Now they may say to me, ‘What is His name?’ What shall I say to them?” God responded with His proper name: “I AM WHO I AM.” God said, “Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘I AM’ (‘Yahweh’ in Hebrew) has sent me to you.” Then God made clear the implications of His name: “This is my name forever, and this is my memorial-name to all generations [of the sons of Israel].” Years later, Moses extolled God, identifying that ‘I AM’ is His name.

Jesus instructed that disciples from the nations should be baptized in the Deity’s name—i.e., ‘Yahweh.’ The disciples of Jesus’ generation were quite aware of the name of the Father and of the Son and the Holy Spirit. But their inclination not to use the name Yahweh when baptizing church saints likely resulted from their realization that ‘Yahweh’ was the name of Israel’s God, while ‘Jesus’ was the name of the church’s “God and Savior.” (The Son and the Father are One, but have different proper names.) The disciples of Jesus’ generation were preaching or proclaiming the church gospel; a future generation of His servants would be making Jewish and gentile disciples for Israel’s worldwide Messianic Kingdom—hence baptism would be in the proper name of Israel’s God. Baptism in the kingdom would be in God’s name (Israel’s deity) rather than in Jesus’ name, which was reserved for the single, but omni-national entity—the church.

For example, Peter—who certainly was present on the mountain in Galilee—had to be commissioned by a vision plus God’s Spirit to take the gospel to the gentile Cornelius. When initially facing Cornelius and his household, Peter related how inappropriate it was for him, a Jew, to be in a gentile house. Had Peter understood Jesus’ instructions on the mountain in Galilee as applying to himself, he would certainly have willingly and enthusiastically embraced the idea of making Cornelius a disciple. However, Peter tarried only a few days with Cornelius. Not only did he not spend enough time to make Cornelius a disciple, he ordered Cornelius be baptized in Jesus’ name and not in the name Jesus had instructed on the mountain in Galilee. Peter’s behavior with Cornelius clearly indicates Peter rightly understood the Great Commission was intended for another generation of Jews and not his generation.

Of course, if the church replaced Israel–as some in the early church believed–then the appropriate baptismal formula would be in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit (a preterist’s perspective). This historical fact may help explain the popularity of the Father-Son-Holy Spirit baptismal formula. However, if nation Israel still has a future (the futurist’s viewpoint), then baptism into the church would be in Jesus’ name.

Jesus’ Presence And The End Of The Age

To encourage the disciples who would execute the Great Commission, Jesus instructed them to remember His ever-present presence, “even to the end of the age.” Such a promise may be reminiscent of the Lord’s encouragement to Moses, “Certainly I will be with you . . .” in carrying out his commission in a gentile nation—hence Jesus’ instructions to “remember.” The phrase, “end of the age,” likely refers to fulfillment of the times of the gentiles, and is nearly co-terminal with the end of the Great Tribulation and second coming.

Jesus taught in the ‘Olivet Discourse’ that His second coming would occur when “all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory.” It is the ‘end’ Jesus mentioned earlier in the same discourse when He said, “This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” Jesus’ prophecy about the gospel and its relationship to the end of the age is likely a seminal summary of His detailed commands later given the disciples atop the mountain in Galilee.

When the kingdom is restored to Israel before the tribulation, the spiritual revival and salvation of Israel as a nation will begin and God’s servant, Israel, will be responsible for making Jewish and gentile converts who will become citizens in the pending Messianic Kingdom. As we know, reassurance of the Lord’s protective presence for those disciples fulfilling the Great Commission will be critically important because of the terrible and devastating resistance mounted against their efforts by an earthbound Satan, the beast, and the false prophet as prophesized in Revelation.

Remember, the kingdom will be restored to Israel when the Lord God fulfills His promise reported by Ezekiel: “My holy name [I AM] I will make known in the midst of My people Israel; and I will not let My holy name [I AM] be profaned anymore.” The initiation of Israel’s national conversion will occur immediately upon the church’s removal from earth because two administrative entities cannot have stewardship of God’s kingdom simultaneously—only sequentially, and without any hiatus. Making disciples of all nations “even to the end of the age” would be nonsensical if applied to the church because the church will not be present on the earth in that time period.

The Apostle Paul—Missionary to the Gentiles

Approximately a dozen-and-a-half years after the Great Commission was given, Jesus gave a specific task to His apostle Paul to make disciples in the gentiles nations of Asia Minor, Greece, Europe, and possibly Spain. Was Jesus’ commission to Paul necessary because His eleven disciples had failed to obey His Great Commission?

The answer is that the Great Commission was never intended for those eleven disciples, but rather for a future generation of Jews who would be spiritually awakened almost simultaneously with the rapture. The reason one can be assured that Paul was not Jesus’ substitute for the disobedient eleven is that Paul claimed God had set him apart from his mother’s womb for preaching Jesus among the gentiles. Of course, such a claim by Paul meant that at the time the Great Commission was given, God was at work preparing a contemporary of His Son who would become His missionary to the world.

Less than ten years into his missionary work, the apostle asserted that the gospel had successfully been made known to all the nations. The task had been completed for both the Jews in the Diaspora and for the gentiles. Paul and others had fulfilled the intent expressed in the Great Commission in their generation.

Summary and Conclusions

Before Jesus’ death and resurrection, our Lord gave His disciples instruction about the Tribulation that included the preaching of the kingdom gospel to all nations thus pinpointing activation of the Great Commission.
At the promulgation of the Great Commission, some disciples doubted Jesus’ God-given supremacy because some did not have the benefit of being eyewitnesses to His Transfiguration. Jesus’ reassured the doubtful by verbally asserting His God-given universal authority.
Disciple making is a Messianic Kingdom convention and not a church practice.
Baptizing disciples according to the Great Commission is to be in Yahweh’s name, not Jesus’ name.
Teaching of disciples is organized around Jesus’ personal commands made during his earthly ministry, and does not extend to rabbinic, Pharisaic, or church doctrines.
Jesus will accompany the besieged Jewish disciple makers from the rapture to the end of the Great Tribulation.
God prepared and commissioned the apostle Paul to make disciples in all nations, a task never intended for the original eleven or the church. Paul successfully completed his commission.

The astounding conclusion to which these analyses point is that Jesus addressed the Great Commission to disciples not of His generation. He had spoken in similar fashion almost three weeks earlier. On the Mount of Olives during His final week, Jesus spoke directly to four of His disciples, yet actually addressed a future generation who would be living in the Great Tribulation. He did this without any signal, except context, indicating a switch in those addressed as subjects. Thus, Jesus addressed the eleven on the Galilean mountain, speaking prophetically in reference to a future Jewish generation.

The Great Commission is for Jews of the tribulation generation. The Great Commission does not apply to the church. Corroborating this conclusion is the fact that the apostle Paul wrote on three different occasions that the gospel had been made known to all the nations—even “to all creation under heaven.” Paul maintained the commandment to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ had been fulfilled during the apostolic era, as early as 57 A.D., roughly some two decades after his conversion but well within his lifetime. The apostolic era ended almost two millennia before the end of the age will end. Therefore, even proclaiming worldwide the gospel of Jesus Christ could not possibly pertain to the contemporary church. Because of the terminus ad quem, the Great Commission pertains to a period yet future, and is intended to recruit and develop qualified citizens for the Messianic Kingdom: first, Jews in Israel and of the Diaspora, and then gentiles.

The Great Commission was never repeated as a command to local churches in any of the epistles. This anomaly was not because the commandment was promoted by oral tradition or implication from scripture, as some have speculated, but because Jesus’ Jewish disciples understood His commands on the Galilean mountain did not apply to them or His church.

Although the disciples’ doubt about Jesus’ identity as King had been alleviated on the mountain in Galilee, the kingdom’s status was still at issue in the disciples’ minds. Moments before Jesus’ ascension, Luke noted His disciples asked, “Lord, is it at this time You are restoring the kingdom to Israel?” Jesus’ response amounted to keeping them in the dark, strongly indicating other matters were at hand—matters more timely, pertinent, and pressing than fulfilling the Great Commission. Jesus’ response probably confirmed the disciples’ suspicion that the Great Commission did not apply to them.

Understanding that the Great Commission applies to a post-church generation resolves Jesus’ apparent conflict between His restriction about teaching church doctrine, and His disciples John and Peter doing just that in their generation. As the prophet Daniel was informed, “knowledge will increase” in the tribulation generation. The knowledge phenomenon likely occurs because Jewish disciple makers come to believe the New Testament is indeed joined to the Old as the very Word of God. However, some of the New Testament is relevant only to church matters and may, therefore, be disregarded in teaching tribulation disciples.

Making disciples during the tribulation answers the problem of creating disunity in the church because the church will have been completed by the rapture before tribulation teaching begins. Tribulation disciples will have Jewish teachers and maintain their distinction as separately discipled groups—unlike the distinction-less members of the ‘new man’ known as the church. Gentiles with Jewish teachers will be a likely reality as pictured by Zechariah, “In those days, ten men from all the nations will grasp the garment of a Jew, saying, ‘Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.’”

Would-be disciples will be taught that the Messianic Kingdom is about to be reality, and that unless their righteousness exceeds that of the Hassidic Jews’ righteousness, they cannot enter the kingdom. Belief on Jesus for forgiveness of sins will be obligatory for both Jewish and gentile citizenship. Teaching the Talmud will be irrelevant because Jesus had not taught the then nonexistent Talmud to His disciples.

The explanation of the baptismal formula has become clear—a clarity Peter and Paul would have recognized immediately. The generation of Jews coming out of Egypt had been baptized into the name of their great teacher, Moses; but Moses’ name was far too parochial for the Great Commission. Another formula was required to focus on both national Israel and on the forthcoming nationally-inclusive kingdom. That formula would be the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit in contradistinction to the end-of-the-age worldwide kingdom of the unholy trio: Satan, the beast, and the false prophet. The apostle Paul knew the Great Commission did not apply to the church, for he stated to the Corinthians, “Christ did not send me to baptize . . .” Such an assertion by saint Paul could only be true if he were not commissioned under the Great Commission. Thus, Peter and Paul never violated the Lord’s baptismal instruction.

Paul was God’s agent in spreading the gospel of Jesus to gentiles as well as Diasporal Jews in all the nations. He stated repeatedly that the task had been effectively completed. The apostle’s words should effectively reduce the mania of modern mission.

What difference do these conclusions make for the contemporary local evangelical church? After all, the Lord has used modern missions as a conduit for some into His church. The difference is this: irrespective of what local churches and mission agencies propound, missions is not presently the central mission of the people of God. Love from a pure heart, pleasing God in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God are closer to the church’s central mission. Modern mission mania is perhaps a diabolical scheme to distract God’s children from pursuing holiness.

The enormous expenditure of local church resources in funds and prayers is currently being misdirected because of the myth of modern missions. Individuals from local congregations need not feel guilty because they remain at home leading a quiet life, attending to their own business, and working with their hands as the apostle Paul commanded the local church of the Thessalonians. A caveat: of course, if, while the Jewish and gentile elders of a local church are ministering to the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit says, “Set apart for Me elder (insert his name) for the work to which I have called him,” then by all means, “Go!” Finally, an elite class of saints known as missionaries who expect, and enjoy, preference in allocation of local church assets was never in view in the Lord’s plan for His church.

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Aug

17

On Liberation Theology

Filed Under liberation theology

Much has been said in our time about Liberation Theology. Biblical liberation comes in two parts: liberty from control of indwelling sin for the believer, and liberty to forego certain behavioral practices to protect certain types of Church believers. Paul explained this latter liberty in Rom. 14:1-15:13, as well as 1 Cor. 8:1-9:23.

Before explaining 1 Cor. 8:1-9:23, it might be helpful to review some history leading up to Paul’s Corinthian letter.

When Jesus returned to His home synagogue in the Galilee, He read from Isaiah “. . . He sent Me to proclaim release to the captives . . .” (Luke 4:18). Next, He had the audacity to assert, “Today (emphasis mine) this Scripture has been fulfilled in your ears” (Luke 4:21). Meanwhile, John the Baptist was languishing in Herod’s prison (Luke 3:20). So much for “Liberation Theology!”

Or, was it? Later in His ministry, Jesus pointed out to some Jews who had believed Him that ‘the truth would make them free’ (cf. John 8:32). They objected. Then Jesus made this critically important statement: “. . . everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin” (John 8:34). So the freedom Jesus was talking about was not a physical release from the clink, but a spiritual release from indwelling sin.

Later in the history of the Church, Paul had summarized the gospel in these two statements: “therefore let it be known to you, brethren, that through Him forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you, and (emphasis mine) through Him everyone who believes is freed from all things, from which you could not be freed through the Law of Moses” (Acts. 13:38-39).

To summarize: the gospel addresses two human problems. The first problem is the unbeliever’s sins that require God’s forgiveness. The second problem is the believer’s slavery to sin that requires God’s Spirit.

So far, we have simply traced from biblical sources the complete salvation message.

Now, let’s review Paul’s commentary on a believer’s liberty. The believer has the liberty not to become a stumbling block to the weak (1 Cor. 8:9). The “weak” is a brother for whose sake Christ died—i.e., a believer (1 Cor. 8:11). The same “weak” for whom Paul became weak, so that he might win the weak (a believer) by any and all means and save the weak brother (1 Cor. 9:21-22).

By the way, the “weak” believer is a singular but integral part of Paul’s four-party classification of the Church that needs to be saved: Jews (non-observant), those under the Law (aka, the circumcised), those without the law (gentiles), and the weak (mostly believing Jews brought up under Moses who had developed a conscience about eating meat sacrificed to idols, and about which their believing gentile brothers had no such conscience (cf. Acts 15:20-21; Rom. 14:1-15:6).

Paul became as a Jew to Timothy (re circumcision) and likely to Barnabas. Paul became as those under the Law in Acts 21:20-26. Paul became a “gentile” in Syrian Antioch (cf. Gal. 2:11-14) and in Philippi (cf. Acts 16:15). And Paul purposed forever to be as “weak” to a weak brother in 1 Cor. 8:13.

Notice from 1 Cor. 9:21 that no matter Paul’s choices to temporarily suspend his liberty in certain behavioral practices, he nevertheless remained under the law of Christ to which he alluded in Rom. 7:4 and 8:2. In other words, his behavior on behalf of salvation for believers did not activate his indwelling sin, nor did it dishonor God because he did it out of love for edification of believers (cf. 1 Cor. 8:1b).

A compelling theological argument that 1 Cor. 9:19-23 does not apply to the unsaved is as follows. All unsaved people are under the control of indwelling sin (Rom. 11:32; Gal. 3:22). As a saved person, the apostle Paul is “in Christ,” that is, Christ is Paul’s Lord (Rom. 1:1), controlling Paul’s members to bear fruit for God (Rom. 7:4-6; 15:18; cf. Gal. 2:17). Were Paul to enslave himself to the unsaved, as some understand 1 Cor. 9:19 to mean, then Christ, abiding in Paul (Gal. 1:16), would become the slave of sin by virtue of His host’s actions (cf. Gal. 2:17). Obviously, such a situation would be truly ludicrous (Rom. 6:10 wherein Christ died to sin once for all). In fact, Christ was careful to avoid entrusting Himself to those under sin (cf. John 2:24-25). However, Paul’s enslavement to saved people (e.g., 2 Cor. 4:5) puts Christ in no such situation because saved people share a common Lord (cf. Rom. 14:4).

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Aug

12

A Case Of Ethnic Cleansing

Filed Under ecclesiology

Introduction

Local churches, some with televised worship services, have become enclaves of ethnicity. In the multiculturalism of the United States, there are individual congregations whose makeup is predominately Norwegian, or German, or Anglo, or Hispanic, or African, or Jewish, or Chinese, or Korean—hyphenated Americans all.. One wonders if such will be the case when the body of Christ, the universal Church, is completed and in heaven. This essay will explore some biblical indicators suggesting that ethnicity will be absent when the Church is completed.

The Biblical Origin of Ethnicity

The scriptural record pinpoints the beginning of the nations and ethnicity. In Gen. 11:6-7, God took ingenious steps to separate the one people that inhabited the earth after the flood. The method God used was to confuse the people’s one language so that they would not understand one another. God then scattered them abroad over the face of the whole earth. In turn, this gave rise to ethnicity.

Reversal of Ethnicity

On the day of Pentecost following Jesus’ ascension, the gift of the Spirit was poured out upon Jesus’ disciples. One of the bewildering phenomenon that accompanied the Spirit was people from various nations heard each of the disciple’s words in his own language (Acts 2:6).

Since many believers hold that this particular Pentecost in Jerusalem was the beginning of the Church, the language miracle may have signaled for the Church the reversal of what God did as reported in the Genesis account of the city of Babel. If so, God might intend that, in the Church, the former separation into ethnic groups is being reversed. Could that Pentecost have been a harbinger of God’s ethnic cleansing?

Spiritual Gifts and the Demise of Ethnicity

Another phenomenon following on the heels of Pentecost was that the Spirit distributed spiritual gifts to each one in the body of the infant Church (1 Cor. 12:1-10). One of the reasons for the gifts could have been the great disparity resident among members from different nations joined in a single body. The gifts were intended to draw peoples with formerly pronounced ethnic or even jingoistic distinctions into a cohesive, interdependent body. For example, through the gift of teaching, members of the body from one nation (e.g., Ephesians from Asia) would become quite dependent upon members from other nations (e.g., Apollos from Egypt, Priscilla and Aquila from Pontus, and Paul from Tarsus). Note: identification of “nations” during the early church was reported in Acts 2:5-11.

Paul had argued such interdependency among members of the Church body was analogous to the interdependency among members of the human body (1 Cor. 12:14-21). However, once the Church matured and recognized that interdependence between members from different nations was God’s plan for the Church, the gifts were no longer necessary (1 Cor. 13:8; Eph. 4:12-13). Thus continued the demise of ethnicity.

The Church: a New Creation Without Ethnicity

The apostle Paul taught that each member of the Church is a new creature (2 Cor. 5:17). He went on to describe that the new creature is not, among other things, a Greek, or a Jew, or a Scythian (Gal. 3:28; Col. 3:11). In other words, ethnic distinctions disappeared in the new creature. How is this so?

The Body of a New Creature is Made Without Human Hands

In discussing some features of the new creature’s new body, Paul described metaphorically that the new body is, “. . . a building from God, a house not made with hands . . .” (2 Cor. 5:1). Stated in another way, the new body does not derive its origin from human parents—the new body has no ethnic origins.

Prior to an unbeliever being born-again, God provides a new heart and a new spirit (Ezek. 36:26). The Spirit installs, temporarily, that new heart and new spirit in the unbeliever’s flesh—meaning his old body. That body most definitely has ethnic origins as derived from his parents. At physical death, or translation—that is, receiving a new body without undergoing physical death—the newly literate heart, and spirit, are transferred into a body without ethnic origins because it was fashioned by God, not a Jewish husband and Jewish wife by procreation, for example. Ethnic cleansing has occurred in mind and body.

The Transfiguration

Remember Jesus’ transfiguration? Matthew described the event in his gospel (Matt. 17:1-4). Along with Jesus, Moses and Elijah also appeared—in immortal bodies—to Peter, James, and John atop that high mountain located, perhaps, in the Galilee. Moses and Elijah certainly had immortal bodies most certainly with national identity. They were definitely Israelites! Doesn’t this contradict loss of ethnicity among members of Jesus’ Church?

The Nation Israel and the Church

The nation Israel is not the Church; the Church is not the nation Israel.

Israel and the Church do share a number of similarities. For example, both have the same God and His anointed One. Both are a congregation of people, whose members have the same human problem of indwelling sin. Members of both need forgiveness of sins to enjoy an eternal relationship with God. And each is referred to by the same Greek name, ecclesia—the nation Israel in the Greek Septuagint, and the Church in the Greek manuscripts of the New Testament.

But similarities do not make these two entities identical—like the elephant and the lion. Both have four legs, eyes, and a tail. However, one has a trunk, tusks, and a skin without fur. The other has fur, claws, and stalks to kill prey for food. Everyone would agree that, despite their similarities, the elephant is not a lion and the lion is not an elephant.

Likewise, the nation Israel is not the Church; the Church is not the nation Israel. For example, to combine these two separate and distinct entities is to assert that God breaks His promise and His oath. To wit: God promised unilaterally, sovereignly, and without conditions, the land of Israel (a specific chunk of real estate partially bordered by the Mediterranean Sea) to the embryonic Israelites: Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Heb. 11:8-9). Abraham, Isaac and Jacob died without receiving God’s promise, guaranteed by His oath, of a land inheritance (Heb. 6:13-18; 11:8, 13).

Not to worry! God’s promise and oath will be fulfilled in the resurrection. According to Jesus, the proof of resurrection was provided by God Himself in asserting to Moses that, “‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ He is not the God of the dead but the living” (Matt. 22:32). God’s land promise and oath to Israel will be fully fulfilled, not altered or broken.

God made no such land promise or oath to the Church—to the non-Israelite nations that comprise an integral part of Christ’s body. Instead, this new body, the Church—unannounced in the Old Testament, and unprecedented in the annals of human history (Eph. 2:11-16; 3:4-6)—will be an heir, not of land, but of God (Rom. 8:17). So to claim that the Church has permanently replaced the nation Israel effectively negates God’s unconditional land promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

A note of clarification: for a season, God has made the Church manager or administrator of the kingdom on earth instead of the nation Israel (Matt. 21:41). This temporary responsibility of the Church ends at the Church’s removal to heaven (rapture) with the concomitant spiritual renewal of Israeli citizens (1 Cor. 15:50-57 and Ezek. 39:7).

Those of the Church who have suffered with Christ, Peter the Jewish fisherman for example, will be fellow heirs with Christ, the First-born heir of the world (Rom. 4:13 combined with 8:17). Note: first-born heirs were entitled to a double portion of an inheritance (Deut. 21:15-17). All Church members likely share in the first half of the double portion, since Jesus is not the First-born among all the brethren—just many who will also share from the second half of His double portion (Rom. 8:29). Inheriting the world with Christ likely precludes Peter a plot of land in Israel inherited by resurrected (and living) descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob at the outset of the God-promised Davidic kingdom. Abraham was never promised the world; his Seed—Jesus—was (Gal. 3:16).

At least thirty critical characteristics of the Church distinguish it dramatically from the nation Israel. To name ten of those characteristics in no particular order:

For individual Church members, Jesus may abide in them and they in Jesus; no record of this relationship exists for Israel as a nation.
Jesus is the true vine for the Church; Judah was the vine for the nation Israel.
A Sabbath rest exists for the Church; no such rest exists for nation Israel.
Church members can live free from enslavement to indwelling sin; all under the Law in the nation Israel are enslaved to indwelling sin.
Church members can live under grace. Israel as a nation lives exclusively under the Law.
Church members enjoy forgiveness of sins via Christ’s blood, and have cleansed consciences, while the nation Israel only enjoyed a covering for sins via blood from the animal sacrifices of the tabernacle and temple. Guilty consciences plague the observant citizens of nation Israel because of defilement from their dead works done under sin’s slavery in obedience to the Law.
The Church is baptized by God’s Spirit into Christ’s body; the nation Israel was baptized into Moses.
The Church is the bride of Christ. The nation Israel is the wife of God.
The high priest of the Church is Jesus after the Melchizedekian order. The high priest of the nation Israel can only be a descendant of Levi. Jesus is a descendant of Judah. And finally,
Like an angelic seraph, the Church’s citizenship is in heaven. The nation Israel’s citizenship is on earth, although some of nation Israel occupies heaven temporarily.

Again, the nation Israel is not the Church; the Church is not the nation Israel. A final example confirming this separate identity is that the apostle Paul, part of the Church’s very foundation, considered himself no longer a Jew. He changed his Jewish name, Saul, to Paul.

In a letter Paul sent to the saints at Corinth, he said that he became as a Jew for Jewish believers who had developed a conscience about eating certain things (1 Cor. 9:20 following 8:9-13; cf. Rom. 15:20 for Paul’s intent). Why would Paul have to act like a Jew if he considered himself still a Jew?

The answer lies in an issue that erupted in the local church at Antioch. Unlike Jerusalem, the Antiochian body was comprised of an ethnically-diverse population. To establish an ethnically-neutral witness, disciples became known as Christians. Even the apostle Simon Barjona, whom Jesus renamed Peter based on his confession of Christ in the foundational credo for Church members, wrote to Jewish believers in the Diaspora, referring to those ethnic Jews as suffering like Christians (1 Pet. 4:16). Peter had been to the Antiochian church (Gal. 2:11).

Therefore, Moses and Elijah, in immortal bodies, maintain their ethnic identity as members of national Israel.

Jesus, the Son of David

Abraham’s Seed is the “Head” of the body, the Church (Col. 1:18). When this Seed, the Son of David, sits on His throne in Jerusalem, He will most assuredly bear the ethnic identity of a Jew. How can Jesus be, simultaneously, an integral part of an ethnically purged body, and the reigning Jewish monarch of a Jewish nation?

Part of the answer lies in the fact that the Bible maintains a distinction between the head and the body. The head is the control center that directs and operates the body. The body, in turn, comprises the members that execute orders from the command center. The head is not the body, only part of it; the body is not the head, but doesn’t function independently of the head.

Another part of the answer is that Old Testament prophets prophesied about a then unnamed Jesus, and His role as Israel’s King, whereas no specific mention whatsoever of His body, the Church, was ever made. Thus, while Jesus can have ethnic identity, His body need not have. Thus, to fulfill prophecy, Jesus will also be known as the Son of David. And while the Head is attached to the body, the Head may wear many hats (or, should we say “crowns”) to fulfill other prophecies featuring God’s Prophet, God’s Anointed, God’s Suffering Servant, and Savior.

Remember, Jesus’ biological father had no ethnicity. The Spirit provided the necessary genetic material to impregnate Jesus’ mother, Mary, making Jesus a truly unique human—unlike each member of His Church. Therefore, it is quite possible for Jesus to be the Son of David (see Matt 1:6 that includes king David in Mary’s genealogy) while His body, the Church, remains ethnically cleansed.

The Believing Remnant of Rom. 11:1-27

The following is somewhat of a subtle argument. Saved Jews are indeed testimony that God has not rejected His people. But this is not the same as saying the Church is comprised of a distinct and separate remnant identified as the nation Israel. The examples Paul gave of believing remnants in Israel’s history were a remnant of the northern kingdom (Rom. 11:3-4; cf. Rom. 9:25-26 and 9:27-28, a future prophecy yet to be fulfilled) and a remnant from the southern kingdom (Rom. 9:29).

Remember, a remnant is a small part of a larger piece. In the believing remnants of the northern and southern kingdoms, the larger piece existed at the time of the remnant.

Yes, saved Jews enjoy the marked distinction of being descendants of Abraham, regarded as Hebrews, and even having a tribal identity—all acknowledging them as being saved out of the nation Israel. God has not rejected His people. But in the Church, saved Jews do not enjoy the distinction of being part of the nation Israel from 70 A.D. until 1948 because the nation Israel did not then exist. Paul perhaps anticipated this (from Dan. 9:26) because he qualified his argument about a believing remnant in his generation by saying one has come to be “at the present time” (Rom. 11:5) when the nation Israel was under Roman rule.

A believing remnant of Jews could conceivably exist after 1948 when the nation again existed.

In Elijah’s time, as well as in Isaiah’s (cf. Rom. 11: 1-26), the remnant of believing Jews did have the unquestioned distinction of being part of the nation Israel. And in the future, when all Israel will be saved at the outset of the Messianic kingdom, a national distinction will certainly be recognized.

The last part of Paul’s statement, however, does not refer to the Church, but rather to believing Jews that become citizens of the Messianic kingdom. Ethnic distinctions will certainly exist in the kingdom, but not in the Church.

So what is the “remnant” of Rom. 11:5? This remnant exists within the Church among born-again Jews. The remnant consisted of Jews who lived by faith (Rom. 2:17) as distinct from the Jews who lived by the Law of Moses (Rom. 2:23). The Jews who lived by faith were “the Israel of God” (Gal. 6:16). And at the outset of the Messianic kingdom, all Jews will live by faith (Jer. 31:34).

Conclusion

One cannot assert dogmatically from the evidence that, in the Church, ethnic cleansing has occurred. However, enough biblical evidence does exist that defies explanation in any other way. What is the value of this study?

Simply this. In the services of local churches, the worship of God ought to be ethnically neutral. Some churches celebrate man’s importance, and responsibilities. Others enthusiastically celebrate their ethnicity with zeal. However, the clear and consistent testimony of the scriptures suggests that God, alone, should be the object of a believer’s corporate worship.

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Aug

9

… And Have Not Love . . .

Filed Under Love

The subject of love! About 635 times, the word finds itself in quotations from around the world (Bartlett, John. Familiar Quotations. Edited by Justin Kaplan, 16^th ed. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1992, pp.1110-1114).

I have a 1977 poster by Jan on the wall of my office. It pictures an older sister and younger brother standing at the school bus stop in the pouring rain. The older sister is holding an umbrella for her younger brother so he won’t get soaked. The caption on the poster reads, “Love is something you do.” Here is one meaning of the word, love.

The word group love is used 374 times in the Bible. And the meaning fits exactly the caption on Jan’s poster. That’s probably why the poster is on my office wall.

However, the secular world has defined love in other terms: feelings, affection, and passion. Those word groups appear six, five, and three times respectively in the Bible—few, if any, in the context of love. You can readily see from the comparison of word frequency between the secular and biblical that biblical love is distinctly different from secular love.

In fact, one might be surprised to know that nowhere in the New Testament is a wife commanded to love her husband despite what popular secular-marriage vows exchanged at marriage ceremonies promise. Husbands, on the other hand, are commanded to love their own wives.

From personal observation, I believe strongly that believing wives do love their own husbands—even though not directly commanded to do so. How does this happen?

Quite simply, really. The believing wife is commanded to be filled with the Spirit, i.e., to be under the control of the Spirit. And we are told that the fruit of the Spirit (His ministry in us) is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, meekness, and self-control. So a believing wife does, in fact, love her own husband with God’s love by virtue of the Spirit’s activity within her.

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Aug

2

Justifying Biblical Justifications

Filed Under justification

Introduction

Ask any believer who has traveled some distance along today’s congested highway of life, “How many times does justification take place in one’s lifetime?” and the likely response will be, “Once!” The reason for this predictable unanimity among believers is the pervasive, powerful, and persuasive teachings emanating from the hallowed halls of reformed academia.

However, the biblical testimony does not justify those teachings.

The following essay will provide a biblical definition of justification and prove from the scriptural record that justification can and does occur more than once in a believer’s lifetime. Also, some implications will be drawn from these analyses that could have significant impact on those walking God’s path of life.

Definition of Justification

The noun, justification, is related to the verb, to justify. What does this verb mean? Simply stated, the verb to justify means, “to prove to be right.” In and of itself, the answer is correct. But pose this question to any husband, “Who determines what is right?” Often the answer comes back—with tongue in cheek, “My wife, of course!” While the answer may contain a certain level of accuracy, it is based on marital experience and the pursuit of marital harmony rather than scripture.

To gain some biblical insight into the definition of the verb, we will consult a parable Jesus taught, featuring a Pharisee and a tax-gatherer, late in His earthly ministry as Luke recorded it in his gospel.^[i]

The Pharisee and tax-gatherer were religious men—both were in the temple, the house of God in Jerusalem. Each man presented his case to God. As evidence of his righteousness, the Pharisee presented God—the Judge—his own righteous behavior as compared with others. Note: in God’s court, righteousness means behavior meeting God’s standard (for Jews, the Law), not one’s own standard or the standard of others (for gentiles, any religious code or ethic).

The tax-gatherer, on the other hand, confessed he was the sinner and threw himself on the mercy of the Judge.

By vocation, the tax-gatherer was a thief. Tax-gatherers were Jews who, by contract with the government of occupation, extracted tax money from fellow Israelites on behalf of Rome. The tax-gatherer took for himself the difference between what he collected and what was owed Rome. The difference rightfully belonged to the taxpayer. Hence, the tax-gatherer was robbing Jewish taxpayers.

Jesus’ evaluation of the two court cases was that the tax-gatherer was justified; the Pharisee was not.

Recall, Jesus was the Prophet promised Israel by God.^[ii] God put in Jesus’ mouth whatever Jesus said because Jesus never spoke on His own initiative.^[iii] So Jesus’ judgment—from God—was in favor of the tax-gatherer because the tax-gatherer, pleading his case aloud, had rightly acknowledged before the Judge that he was bereft, by his own nature, of the ability to accomplish any righteous behavior whatsoever meeting God’s standard. He had pleaded himself the sinner.

From the parable, what have we discovered about the verb to justify? To justify means to prove to be right, with God setting the standard of “right” as well as judging if one meets His standard.

Now, the noun justification means having been justified by God. The court experience of the tax-gatherer in Jesus’ parable can be described as his justification. The tax-gatherer presented his plea: mercy, because I am the sinner in Thy court. With downcast eyes and pounding of chest, the plea was directed to God. In turn, God judged by His standard that the tax-gatherer was proved right by his own admission and behavior. God’s verdict: the tax-gatherer was justified. The sinner received God’s mercy and the imprimatur of His righteousness—he went home justified. The entire process from beginning to end can correctly be termed, justification.

Justification Occurs Repeatedly in a Believer’s Life

The premiere example of repeated justification was Abraham. Abraham was justified seven times on six occasions as recorded by the writers of the scriptures. Before learning about Abraham, however, a brief digression is in order to explore the nature of a sinner.

Due to sin dwelling in all human bodies from conception, no one is capable of doing God-defined good deeds,^[iv] except Jesus. Jesus taught that unless one’s righteousness (doing good deeds by one’s own standard of good) surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, one will not enter God’s kingdom.^[v] How serious is this problem? Very serious—fatal, actually.

You see, scribes and Pharisees knew accurately God’s standard for righteousness better than almost everyone on the planet. Some of them dedicated their lives to scrupulously and consistently obeying God’s standard as revealed to Moses. For example, the former-Pharisee Paul even claimed, by his conscientious Law-keeping activities, that he was blameless as far as the Law was concerned.^[vi]

However, Paul’s righteousness wouldn’t get him into God’s kingdom as Jesus had asserted. And the reason was that by attempting to obey the Law himself, Paul’s indwelling sin was actually activated and empowered by its deceptions to enslave its host, culminating in a pattern of acts of sin.^[vii] God anticipated this Law-induced failure by including animal sacrifices (a covering for sins) in the Law.

To solve the human dilemma of law-induced, sin-deceived, sin-activated, and sin-controlled behavior judged woefully inadequate by His own standard, God deftly avoided the problem of law activating sin by decreeing that a human’s belief in a promise to that individual from God would be credited to that believer’s account, by God’s grace, as His righteousness.

Two important actions by God made this decree legitimate: one, God gave the sinner a new heart so that he became equipped to believe God.^[viii] Two, God arranged for Jesus to take all a sinner’s sins upon Himself and physically die for all those sins so the believer’s account would be wiped clean of all his unrighteous deeds. Based on Jesus’ voluntary and sacrificial death for others, God could forgive all a sinner’s sins. Note: Christ’s death served retroactively for believing humans who had lived, sinned, and died physically before His death.^[ix]

Under the foregoing conditions, anyone who believed a promise God made to that individual would have his faith credited to his account as God’s righteousness. Now let’s return to our study and review the biblical record of Abraham’s justifications.

The Biblical Record of Multi-justifications in Abraham’s Life

The first recorded instance that Abraham believed a promise of God was when God promised Abraham a land of his own outside his country of origin.^[x] At the same time, God also promised He would make Abraham a great nation. Abraham was less than seventy-five years old when he believed God’s land and nation promises.^[xi] Based on his belief, Abraham left his hometown^[xii]—a recognizable manifestation of his faith.^[xiii] Justification one.

The second time Abraham believed God was when God made a twofold promise to a childless Abraham: a son, and an inestimable number of descendants.^[xiv] Moses noted that Abraham “believed in the Lord; and He reckoned it to him as righteousness” (Gen. 15:6).^[xv] Abraham was around eighty-five years old when he heard God’s twofold promise.^[xvi] Justification two.

The third time, God promised Abraham that he would become a father of nations.^[xvii] Abraham believed God’s promise, justified by his own circumcision at ninety-nine.^[xviii] Justification three.

The fourth time Abraham believed a promise of God was when God promised a son, Isaac, to Abraham within the next twelve months, despite Sarah’s old age and barrenness.^[xix] Abraham was ninety-nine years old when he believed God.^[xx] Based on his belief, Abraham continued to have relations with his wife Sarah; Isaac was miraculously conceived and born. Justification four.

The fifth time Abraham believed God was in the dispute over who would be Abraham’s heir, Ishmael or Isaac. Abraham believed God’s promise that Isaac would be his heir.^[xxi] Now Ishmael’s departure followed on the heels of Isaac’s weaning. Based on the weaning habits of the day,^[xxii] Abraham may have been about one-hundred-three when he expelled Ishmael and Hagar from his household,^[xxiii] thereby continuing a record of being justified by works.^[xxiv] Justification five.

The sixth time Abraham believed God was when God tested Abraham’s faith by commanding him to sacrifice Isaac.^[xxv] This was likely a test of faith in God’s earlier promises of having a son, multitudes of descendants, becoming a father of nations, and having Isaac as his heir. Abraham may have been about one-hundred-thirteen years old when God tested him.^[xxvi] James, the Lord’s brother, concluded from the biblical record that this “work of faith” resulted in Abraham being justified by [a faith that] works.^[xxvii] The writer of Hebrews corroborated James’ conclusion that Abraham acted by faith.^[xxviii] Justification six.

God’s seventh biblically recorded promise to Abraham came at the conclusion of his successfully passing God’s sacrifice test, at perhaps one-hundred-thirteen.^[xxix] God’s promise was that Abraham’s seed would be heir of the world.^[xxx] Jesus’ incarnation, life, death, resurrection, and ascension to God’s right hand, from whence He received all power and authority in heaven and on earth, verify that Abraham believed God’s promise.^[xxxi] Justification seven.

To summarize: from the observations of six biblical writers, commemorating six distinct events,^[xxxii] some separated from each other by years in Abraham’s life of faith, come the irrefutable conclusion that God credited His righteousness to Abraham at least seven times in his life based on Abraham’s belief in seven specific promises that God had made to him. Those six writers, under the inspiration of God’s Spirit, were Moses, Matthew, Luke, Paul, the writer of Hebrews, and James.

The Biblical Record of Multi-justifications in Paul’s Life

In Romans 5:1, Paul made it clear that he had been justified by faith, likely during his “Damascus” experience with the Lord and the Lord’s messenger, Ananias. God’s promise to Paul, which Paul believed, was that his sins had been forgiven through Jesus death.^[xxxiii] This marked God’s first promise to Paul whose account was credited with His righteousness because Paul believed the promise.

The second promise God gave Paul was that he would be a chosen instrument—an apostle—to bear His name before gentiles, kings, and the sons of Israel.^[xxxiv] The last half of the book of Acts is witness to Paul’s unwavering belief in this promise, amounting to another instance of justification.^[xxxv]

Although not specifically reported in the scriptures, God gave Paul a third critically important promise—probably shortly after the second promise in Damascus. The third promise was that through Jesus, Paul could have freedom from slavery to indwelling sin.^[xxxvi] The apostle’s succinct but comprehensive confession in his Galatians letter testifies to his belief in this promise from God,^[xxxvii] marking yet another justification episode in his life.

The fourth promise God gave Paul was that he would have an immortal body free from indwelling sin.^[xxxviii] Paul’s letters confirm he believed God’s promise of immortality.^[xxxix] Undoubtedly the apostle’s faith was credited to him as God’s righteousness.

The fifth promise God gave Paul was that a believer might be a fellow heir with Christ—the First-born who would receive a double portion^[xl]—if the believer suffers with Christ.^[xli] This promise will become a reality based on God’s testing of the believer’s faith. For Paul, perhaps the testing of his faith in God’s third promise of freedom from sin’s enslavement came during his trials and tribulations throughout his ministry.^[xlii] Paul’s testing experience, therefore, was somewhat analogous to God’s faith-completing test of Abraham’s faith in His promise to Abraham of a son from whom would come descendants as numerous as the stars in the heavens.

Conclusion

Despite what many Christians believe about justification, the Bible clearly shows that justification may occur on several occasions in the lifetime of a believer. The occurrence of multi-justifications has proved to be right in two believers’ experiences; thus, biblical justifications have been justified.

One’s justification is believing a promise that God has made, and having that faith credited by God to one’s account as His righteousness. Believing a promise of God results in observable action.

Two promises God has made to all believers are: forgiveness of one’s sins, and freedom from enslavement to indwelling sin. Ceasing all one’s self-efforts to attain heaven is observable behavior for one’s having faith in God’s promise of forgiveness, and results in Him crediting this faith permanently and irreversibly to the believer’s account as His righteousness. Rigorously dogging Paul’s footsteps—encapsulated in Gal. 2:20—will insure freedom from indwelling sin.

In addition, God promised a spiritual body free from the tyranny of indwelling sin, either through resurrection, or translation—meaning the gift of a new body without undergoing physical death. Faith in a promise of God not yet fulfilled can be reckoned to the believer’s account as His righteousness.

Finally, a believer is promised that he may share in the double-portion of Christ’s inheritance. Except for God’s forgiveness of sins through Christ’s death, there appear to be time lapses on some occasions between God’s promises and His fulfillment of those promises.

God will introduce the believer to trials and tribulations that test the believer’s faith, perhaps exclusively the faith in His promise of freedom from indwelling sin’s enslavement. If the believer steadfastly adheres to God’s promise of freedom during the testing of his faith, that faith will be credited to him as God’s righteousness. Thus, trials offer real opportunity for an additional instance of justification by faith in the life of a believer. This additional justification (completing, perchance, the believer’s faith) may lead to receiving the promise of sharing in part of Christ’s inheritance.

end notes

^[i] Luke 18:9-14: “And He also told this parable to certain ones who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and viewed others with contempt: Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee, and the other a tax-gatherer. The Pharisee stood and was praying thus to himself, ‘God, I thank Thee that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax-gatherer. I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get.’ But the tax-gatherer, standing some distance away, was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, the sinner!’ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified (emphasis mine) rather than the other . . .” Note: all quotations and citations herein are from the New American Standard Bible (1955).

^[ii] Deut. 18:18.

^[iii] John 7:16; 14:10b, 24b.

^[iv] Matt. 19:16 combined with Luke 18:19, each gospel recounting the issue of good from God’s perspective.

^[v] Matt. 5:20.

^[vi] Phil. 3:6.

^[vii] Cf. 1 Cor. 15:56, for the relationship between indwelling sin and law, experienced personally by Paul according to his own testimony in Rom. 7:5 (before salvation) and Rom. 7:8-10 (after salvation). This problem with Law-activated sin is dramatically demonstrated at God’s first giving of the Law. The people’s twice-repeated self-confident response was, “All that the Lord has spoken we will do . . .” (Num. 19:8; 24:3). Sin dwelling in God’s people was activated by this proud sin-promoted declaration of pledged obedience to the Law. However, almost immediately upon receiving the Law, the sons of Israel shattered the second commandment (Exod. 20:3-5) by fashioning a golden calf to worship (Exod. 32:1-4).

^[viii] Ezek. 36:26—a promise of God in a new covenant. Note: in Hebrews 8:6, Jesus is identified as the mediator of a better covenant (compared with God’s covenant mediated by Moses) which the letter’s author also described as an eternal covenant in 13:20. So certain aspects of the better covenant are timeless, like that of a new heart (Deut. 29:4 implies God gave Moses a new heart) and the ability to believe God’s promises (Deut. 30:11-14). These aspects benefited the Old Testament elect, but not the entire nation of Israel all at once as will occur when the events of Ezekiel 36:22-38 come to pass.

^[ix] Rom. 3:25-26.

^[x] Heb. 11:8-9. In James’ letter, he unambiguously coupled the people of faith listed in Hebrews 11 with justification by linking Rahab’s faith in Heb. 11:31 with her being justified by [a faith that] works in Jas. 2:25. Note: some of God’s promises were made to “Abram” before God changed his name to “Abraham” (in Gen. 17:5). For the most part, biblical history used the name “Abraham” for the patriarch; this study will observe that convention. Also, according to the writer of Hebrews (Heb. 11:13) the land and nation promises still await fulfillment (cf. Jer. 3:14-19; 33:1-26 and Ezek. 37:22, 24-28 for prophecies of fulfillment).

^[xi] Gen. 12:4.

^[xii] See Acts 7:2-4 for additional details of Abraham’s homeland departure.

^[xiii] Dr. Haddon W. Robinson, once ranked among the ten best preachers in the country, used to say, “Man is saved by faith alone, but saving faith is never alone.” Saving faith is always accompanied by God’s works. James referred to this reality as “justified by [a faith that] works” (Jas. 2:21, 25). The apostle Paul referred to this same reality as the “obedience of faith” (Rom. 1:5; 16:26).

^[xiv] Gen.15:4-5.

^[xv] God may have led Moses to insert Gen. 15:6 into Abraham’s story as a preview because of what Abraham was about to do. Following the ill-advised advice of his wife Sarah, Abraham took matters into his own hands and had a son by Sarah’s Egyptian maid, Hagar. His action likely originated from confusion about just how his barren wife could conceive; Abraham’s initiative also preempted God’s work. However, Abraham’s belief in God’s promise was later confirmed by Isaac’s birth, as well as God’s test of Abraham’s faith by commanding the sacrifice of Isaac. So Moses was justified in inserting his justification comment into Abraham’s story well before Abraham’s “obedience of faith” was manifested.

^[xvi] Remember, Abraham entered the land at about seventy-five years of age (Gen. 12:4). Ten years later at eighty-five, Sarah’s Egyptian maid, Hagar, was with child by Abraham (Gen. 16:3). So Abraham was about eighty-five when God made His twofold promise to Abraham immediately preceding Hagar’s conception.

^[xvii] Gen. 17:5.

^[xviii] Gen. 17:24.

^[xix] Gen. 18:10-14. Cf. also Heb. 11:11-12. Referring to this general period in Abraham’s life, the apostle Paul, in Rom. 4:17-21, summarized Gen. 18:9-15, concluding himself that Abraham’s faith (in God’s promise of a son within a year) “. . . was also (emphasis mine) credited to him [Abraham] as [God’s] righteousness” (Rom. 4:22). Paul pointed out that Moses had inserted Gen. 15:6 for Jesus’ sake (likely for reassurance during Jesus’ testing from the horticulture at Gethsemane to the horror on Golgotha), and for believers of the apostle’s generation as well (Rom. 4:23-24).

The conjunction “also” in Rom. 4:22 is present in the following Greek texts: The Greek New Testament According to the Majority Text. Edited by Zane C. Hodges and Arthur L. Farstad, 2^nd ed. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1985, p. 485; Novum Testamentum Graece. Edited by Barbara and Kurt Aland, Johannes Karavidopoulos, Carlo M. Martini, and Bruce M. Metzger, 27^th rev. ed. Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, 1993, p. 416; and The Greek New Testament. Edited by Barbara Aland, Kurt Aland, Johannes Karavidopoulos, Carlo M. Martini, and Bruce M. Metzger, 4^th rev. ed. Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, United Bible Societies, 2002, p. 530.

However, in some English translations, the conjunction “also” is omitted: the Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB, 2003); the New International Version (NIV, 1978); and the New Revised Standard Bible (NRSB, 1977). Another translation, the New American Standard Bible (NASB, 1995) translates the conjunction as a coordinate conjunction, “also.” See Wallace, Daniel B. Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1996, p. 671.I.B.1. for a discussion of this use of the conjunction. Still another, the New English Translation (NET, 2001) translates the conjunction as emphatic, “indeed.” See Wallace, [op. cit.], p. 673.F.1. for the emphatic use of the conjunction. Also, see Dana, H. E. and Mantey, Julius R. A Manual of the Greek New Testament. Toronto: Ontario, Macmillan, 1955, § 221(3) for an excellent treatise on the emphatic use of the conjunction.

The issue of Paul’s meaning in verse 22 is further confused by the HCSB (via a footnote) and the NASB (via type font) indicating, erroneously, that the verse is a quote of Gen. 15:6. Finally, the New King James Bible (NKJB, 1979) changes the word order, making the conjunction continuative, “And therefore . . .” See Wallace, [op. cit.], p. 671.I.B.1. for the continuative use of the conjunction

To clarify this confusion among translators, it may be pointed out that earlier in chapter 4, verse 9 of his letter to Roman saints, Paul modified Gen. 15:6 from the phrase “Abraham believed God, . . .” to the single word, “Faith . . .” noting this modification by the introductory phrase, “For we (emphasis mine) say . . .” Paul’s paraphrase of Gen. 15:6 allowed him to divorce himself from slavishly quoting Moses’ words verbatim, thereby giving Paul the freedom to formulate his own general principle of faith being credited as God’s righteousness. Thus, as he continued his argument in verse 22, Paul himself, and quite apart from Moses’ words, drew his own conclusion that “it,” i.e., Abraham’s faith (mentioned editorially in the preceding verses 16-21), “was also credited to him . . .” as it had been credited previously by Moses in Gen. 15:6. Hence, Rom. 4:22 was not intended as a direct quote of Gen. 15:6; the conjunction “and” is correctly translated by the NASB as a coordinate conjunction combining two distinct but parallel events of God justifying Abraham (in Gen. 15:4-5, and in Gen. 18:10).

Shattuck accurately noted this use of the conjunction in Rom. 4:22: “‘Also’ is not found in the Genesis quote [Gen. 15:6]. In His providence the Holy Spirit, by inserting the word, “also,” made sure that this example of justification was clearly distinct (emphasis mine) from the Genesis 15 account” (Shattuck, Herb. The Just Man Shall Live by His Faith: Charting the Way Back to the Gospel, preliminary draft of an unedited manuscript, undated, p. 68).

^[xx] Gen. 17:17.

^[xxi] Gen. 21:12.

^[xxii] For the probable age of Isaac at his weaning, see: Easton, Burton Scott. The International Standard Bible Encyclopaedia. (ISBE) Edited by James Orr, Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans, reprint, 1976, vol. 5, p. 3076.

^[xxiii] For a record of this act of Abraham’s faith, see Gen. 21:14.

^[xxiv] Biblical confirmation of this work of faith was highlighted by the writer to the Hebrews, Heb. 11:18.

^[xxv] Gen. 22:9-10.

^[xxvi] Based on Isaac’s carrying wood for the burnt offering and his perceptive inquiry into the absence of a sacrificial lamb, he may have been in his early teens, making his father about one-hundred-thirteen.

^[xxvii] James wrote, “You see that faith (in God’s promise of myriads of descendants) was working with his [Abraham’s] works (of preparing to offer Isaac on the altar) and as a result of the works, faith was perfected (or completed, Jas. 2:22).” The example of Abraham’s faith that resulted in works justified James’ question, “Was not Abraham our father justified by [a faith that] works when he offered up Isaac his son on the altar?” (Jas. 2:21).

^[xxviii] Heb. 11:17-19: the writer’s analysis and conclusion about resurrection were probably derived from the following logic. The two conflicting statements, “In Isaac your seed shall be called” (Gen. 21:12; Heb.11:18) and Abraham’s pre-sacrifice statement to his young men, “. . . we [Isaac and I] will worship and return to you” (Gen. 22:5) could plausibly be reconciled by Isaac’s resurrection after he died as the sacrifice. One way Isaac could return from being the sacrifice, and have descendants, is that God would raise him from the dead—which is what the writer to the Hebrews conjectured Abraham was considering (Heb. 11:19).

From Job’s comments in Job 14:13-14 and 19:26-27, the concept of resurrection was not foreign among believers in Job’s time. The patriarch Abraham may have been a contemporary of Job (Genung, John Franklin. ISBE. [op. cit.], vol. III, p. 1679). Thus, Abraham could have believed in resurrection.

However, as we know from the episode, God did not resurrect Isaac at that time, but rather provided a substitute sacrifice—a ram (Gen. 22:13-14). So Abraham was correct in telling his young men that he and his son would return, but by God’s sacrifice substitution of a ram and not by God’s resurrection. The writer of Hebrews had the correct theology but not the correct timing.

^[xxix] Remember James’ conclusion recorded in Note 27 above was that, “. . . [Abraham’s] faith was perfected (or completed, Jas. 2:22). Biblical faith means belief in something God has promised, warned, or commanded. Faith may be enlarged or strengthened. Faith is strengthened by removing doubt from one’s mind. Faith is enlarged by added revelation from God.

The only way that Abraham’s faith could be completed would be if God enlarged the content of Abraham’s faith by giving him an additional promise to the original six—which He did (Gen. 22:17c-18). Abraham believed this new promise, as James concluded: “and the Scripture was fulfilled which says, ‘and Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness . . .’” (Jas. 2:23).

^[xxx] Gen. 22:17c-18. God’s additional promise was expressed as, “. . . your [Abraham’s] seed shall possess the gate of His enemies. And in your [Abraham’s] seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed . . .” The apostle Paul understood this promise to mean that Abraham’s seed was Christ, and that He would be heir of the world (cf. Rom. 4:13 and Gal. 3:16).

^[xxxi] For Jesus’ birth as the seed of Abraham, see: Luke 3:23, 34. For His being heir with all power and authority, see: Dan. 7:13-14 and Matt. 28:18.

^[xxxii] For clarity of understanding, the following list organizes and summarizes Abraham’s justification experiences under six categories: (1) the biblical event; (2) God’s promise(s) with its scriptural citation; (3) Abraham’s age at God’s promise(s); (4) the biblical citation recording Abraham’s belief of God’s promise(s); (5) Abraham’s justification; and (6) Abraham’s work(s) of faith.

· (1) Abraham’s first encounter with God in his hometown of Ur; (2) God’s promises of a land and becoming a nation, Gen. 12:1-2; (3) Abraham’s age of less than seventy-five years; (4) Abraham’s belief, Heb. 11:8; (5) justification one; and (6) Abraham’s departure from Ur.

· (1) Abraham’s confrontation with God over Eliezer; (2) God’s promises of an heir and many descendants, Gen. 15:4-5; (3) Abraham’s age of eighty-five; (4) Moses’ comment about Abraham’s believing, Gen. 15:6; (5) justification two; and (6) Abraham’s continued relations with Sarah and his later attempted sacrifice of Isaac.

· (1)Abraham’s circumcision; (2) God’s promise of Abraham becoming a father of nations, Gen. 17:5; (3) Abraham’s age of ninety-nine; (4) Abraham’s belief of God’s promise, Gen. 17:24; (5) justification three; and (5) Abraham’s own circumcision.

· (1) the Lord’s appearance; (2) God’s promises of an heir, Gen. 15:5; 17:5; 17:21 and 18:10; (3) Abraham’s age of ninety-nine, Gen. 17:17 and 17:24; (4) Abraham’s belief of the promises, Gen. 21:1-3 and Rom. 4:22; (5) justification four; and (6) continued relations with Sarah.

· (1) Ishmael and Hagar’s ordered departure from Abraham’s household; (2) God’s promise that Isaac would be Abraham’s heir; (3) Abraham’s approximate age of one-hundred-three; (4) biblical evidence of Abraham’s belief, Heb. 11:18; (5) justification five; and (6) Abraham’s actual dismissal of Hagar and Ishmael, Gen. 25:14.

· (1) God’s test of Abraham’s faith; (2) God’s previous promises of Isaac being Abraham’s heir, Gen. 22:9—as well as having a son and being a father of multitudes and nations, Gen. 15:4-5 and 17:5; (3) Abraham’ estimated age of about one-hundred-thirteen; (4) biblical evidence of Abraham’s faith by accepting God’s substitute for Isaac, Gen. 22:13; also cf. Gen. 15:6 and Heb. 11:18; (5) justification six; and (6) Abraham’s actual attempt at sacrifice, Gen. 22:9.

· (1) God’s substitute of a sacrifice for Isaac; (2) God’s additional promise that Abraham would have an heir who would inherit the world, Gen. 22:17c-18; (3) Abraham’s age, an estimated one-hundred-thirteen; (4) biblical evidence of Abraham’s faith was Jesus, John 8:56; (5) justification seven; and (6) Abraham’s work of faith, Jas. 2:22—confirmed by Jesus’ birth and genealogy in Luke 3:23, and God’s giving Jesus authority over the world, Matt. 28:18 (fulfilling the vision in Dan. 7:13-14).

^[xxxiii] Cf. Acts 13:38 where Paul proclaimed that same promise of forgiveness to others at Pisidian Antioch.

^[xxxiv] Luke records the promise in Acts 9:15. See Rom. 1:5 and Gal. 1:15 for further details about the promise.

^[xxxv] Recall Notes 15 and 19 above of Moses and Paul’s Abrahamic analyses, respectively, illustrating both men determined independently two distinct occasions of Abraham’s justifications by faith from the biblical record. It stands to reason that a review of Paul’s life record as a believer from New Testament data would likewise yield sufficient evidence to pinpoint Paul’s justification experiences. Paul’s own testimony supports this reasoning (2 Tim. 4:7-8, 17a).

^[xxxvi] Cf. Acts 13:39, wherein Paul proclaimed God’s justification for those who, by faith in Christ’s indwelling, will realize freedom from indwelling sin—something the Law of Moses could not accomplish. See Gal. 1:16 where God revealed Christ’s dwelling in Paul early on in the apostle’s walk. Also see Rom. 7:7-8:4, which may chronicle those early days leading up to being justified by faith in Christ’s indwelling.

Paul’s revelation in Gal. 2:17 that he was seeking to be justified in Christ (instead of keeping the Law for justification) at least seven years after he had been justified by believing God’s promise of forgiveness, is incontrovertible evidence of Paul being justified more than once (For Paul’s chronology, see Unger, Merrill F. Unger’s Bible Dictionary. Chicago: Moody Press, 1971, p. 832).

Finally, Paul’s prayer in Phil. 3:9 substantiates that the apostle was seeking justification through faith in God’s promise of freedom from slavery to indwelling sin by renouncing his own keeping the Law. Jesus’ life, manifested by the Spirit through Paul’s faith, fulfilled the Law in Paul (Rom. 8:4 and 2 Cor. 4:11).

^[xxxvii] Gal. 2:20.

^[xxxviii] 2 Cor. 5:4c-5: to paraphrase Paul, God prepared us (through the Spirit’s baptism into Christ) so that our mortality will be swallowed up by immortality.

^[xxxix] 1 Cor. 15:42-49 and 2 Cor. 5:6-8.

^[xl] Heb. 1:6 reveals Christ’s status as First-born. See Deut. 21:15-17 for a double portion of the father’s wealth bequeathed to the first-born.

^[xli] Rom. 8:17. See Dillow, Joseph C. The Reign of the Servant Kings. Hayesville, NC: Schoettle, 1992, pp. 373-379 for a discussion on this conditional promise from God.

^[xlii] For an example of Paul’s early testing, see Rom. 7:7-25. For Paul’s testimony of later testings, see 1 Cor. 15:31-32a.

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Jul

20

The Upper Room: A New Commandment And A New Covenant

Filed Under new covenant

Introduction

Just hours before His crucifixion, Jesus gave eleven of His disciples a new commandment that would weave the identifying fabric of their relationship to Jesus.^[i] The commandment came shortly after Judas’ departure from the upper room where Jesus and the disciples had gathered to celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread also called Passover. Immediately before issuing this new commandment, Jesus had symbolically inaugurated a new covenant using a cup of wine taken from the Passover table.^[ii] This new covenant provided the context in which Jesus promulgated His new commandment and subsequent application of the covenant’s promises to His disciples.

During those final upper-room moments eventuating in His Gethsemane struggle, subsequent arrest, torture, and death, Jesus unveiled details of new covenant promises to the somewhat perplexed eleven. Earlier in Jesus’ earthly ministry, He had alerted the disciples that they were to become recipients of the kingdom.^[iii] The kingdom would be administered under God’s new covenant with Israel—much of which would apply to church life.

Obedience to the command to love one another would depend on the last phrase of the new covenant that God had explained to His prophet Ezekiel—the promise that God would cause His people to walk in His statutes and observe His ordinances.^[iv]

This study will uncover the details and significance of this extraordinarily important interrelationship between commandment and covenant. Some liberties have been taken by citing epistolary material to broaden understanding of a few theological points touched on only briefly by the Lord in the upper room.^[v] All material is intended for all saints, whether having just entered the kingdom^[vi] or having traveled some distance along the narrow path of kingdom life. An End Notes Section is appended for the interested reader who might like to check the logic behind the text’s commentary, biblical citations, and extracanonical references supporting development of this doctrine.

A New Covenant: Context for a New Commandment

As mentioned above, Jesus had symbolically inaugurated the new covenant at the Passover table: “This cup which is poured out for you is the new covenant in My blood.”^[vii] The new covenant was comprised of five “I wills” declared by God. To paraphrase the five: I will cleanse you; I will give you a heart transplant; I will give you a new spirit; I will put My Spirit within you; and, I will cause you to manifest obedience.^[viii]

The following summary of Jesus’ actions and words (correlated with God’s five “I wills”) will help to explain what took place that Passover evening with His disciples.

1. By washing the disciples’ feet at the outset of the Passover observance, Jesus likely portrayed God’s new covenant cleansing from defilement with concomitant forgiveness of the disciples’ sins—being careful to point out Judas Iscariot’s exclusion from new covenant cleansing, while demonstrating His own personal forgiveness of Judas’ heinous, though predicted, sin of betrayal.^[ix]

2. and 3. After the foot washing, Jesus alluded to the eleven disciples’ new births promised in the new covenant.^[x]

4. Then, He explained His role in securing from His Father the permanent indwelling of God’s Spirit for each disciple.^[xi]

5. And finally, Jesus revealed the mystery hidden in God’s new covenant promise of making the disciples manifest obedience to the Father as well as to the Son’s new commandment to love one another.^[xii]

What’s “New” About Jesus’ New Commandment?

Immediately after Jesus’ cup/covenant metaphor, eleven pairs of Jewish ears heard Jesus say, “I give you a new commandment: love one another.”^[xiii] At least some of those Jewish heads to which ears were attached had to be wondering, “What’s new about a commandment to love?”

Moses had instructed all members of God’s congregation to love their neighbors as themselves.^[xiv] Furthermore, Jesus had already taught the overarching centrality of love recorded in God’s word: to wit, love God; and love your neighbor as yourself.^[xv] The contemporary Jewish religious establishment had grasped accurately the significance for life of combining these two commandments.^[xvi] So, what was “new” about Jesus’ new commandment given the eleven in the upper room?

Two possible aspects come to mind. One, love’s object under the new commandment was reciprocal between His disciples rather than merely unidirectional toward one’s neighbor. Jesus had replaced the object “neighbor” in the original commandment by reciprocity between His disciples. However, since the original commandment to love one’s neighbor was mandated for the entire congregation of the sons of Israel, one’s neighbor would de facto reciprocate love received. Hence, this aspect of the new commandment was really not “new.”

While the first “new” aspect could have related to love’s object, the second “new” aspect related to the source from which love was to be manifested and the quality of that love. Under the old commandment, love for one’s neighbor was circumscribed by one’s love for oneself. To express this in another way, love under the old commandment was limited by the adequacies or inadequacies of one’s own quixotic humanity.

If this condition of “oneself” also related to the new commandment, then the quality of the love could vary from person to person. This variability in love under the old covenant may readily be observed by the dramatically different responses from the priest, Levite, and Samaritan in Jesus’ robbers/victim illustration crafted for an obdurate Jewish lawyer—an illustration designed so the lawyer could readily identify his own neighbor!^[xvii]

However, the new commandment contained no such human limitations. Instead, the source and quality of Jesus’ love for His disciples marked the only “new” aspect of the new commandment.^[xviii]

Jesus instantly underscored the parameters of love under the new commandment: “Just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.” Jesus’ love for His disciples became the example for the truly “new” feature of the new commandment—the very feature of source and quality that all believers are enjoined to imitate.^[xix]

Jesus’ Love For His Disciples

How, then, had Jesus loved His disciples? Philip was the one in the upper room that night who unwittingly swerved into uncovering the source and quality of Jesus’ love for His disciples. Following a brief dialogue between Jesus and Thomas about the Father, Philip promptly propounded his bold proposal: “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.”^[xx] In turn, Jesus mildly upbraided Philip for not realizing that, “He who has seen Me has seen the Father . . .”^[xxi]

The implication that may be drawn from Jesus’ admonishment of Philip is truly astounding. The implication is that whenever Jesus loved the eleven disciples during His earthly ministry, it was, in fact, the Father’s love being manifest to them through His Servant Son. The implication was confirmed by Jesus’ next statement: “The words that I say to you I do not speak on My own initiative, but the Father abiding in Me does His works. Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me . . .”^[xxii] And since it was God’s love, the source and quality of that love had no human restrictions or limitations whatsoever because God’s love was manifest through Jesus who had no indwelling sin and no personal agenda that might impede, influence, distort, or obstruct Love’s manifestation.

New Covenant Obedience to the New Commandment

Recall under A New Covenant, Item 5 above, Jesus revealed the mystery of new covenant obedience. The content of the mystery was, “. . . you in Me, and I in you.”^[xxiii] Jesus’ self-initiative-free obedience to the Father in loving the disciples had resulted from the pattern of the divine relationships: Jesus in the Father, and the Father in Jesus.^[xxiv] Similarly (i.e., “as I have loved you,” John 13:34b), the disciples’ obedience to Jesus’ new commandment to love one another would result from following Jesus’ pattern—a pattern modified by new divine relationships not revealed under the old covenant: the disciples abiding in Jesus, and Jesus abiding in the disciples.

A Digression: Importance of the Love-One-Another Commandment

Citing the old covenant language, the apostle Paul’s admonition was, “Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law (emphasis mine).”^[xxv] Surely, under the new covenant, disciples loving one another would likewise fulfill God’s law. Hence, fulfilling the commandment to love another is the all-inclusive core for pleasing God by the church living under the new covenant through faith.

Validation And A Spectacular Promise

Back to the dialogue with Philip: Jesus went on to buttress His assertion to Philip that seeing Him was actually seeing the Father by referring to a fourteen-hundred-year-old promise from God to Moses. God had informed Moses He would raise up a Jewish prophet whose very words to his brothers would be put in the prophet’s mouth by God Himself.^[xxvi] Validation of the prophet’s divine appointment and divine relationship would come from the miraculous works the prophet would speak into happening. An example of miraculous works from words was provided when Jesus commanded the raging Sea of Galilee: “‘Hush, be still.’ And it [the Sea] became perfectly calm.”^[xxvii] Jesus was indeed the promised truth-speaking prophet, validated by the miracles God performed through Him.^[xxviii]

Keying on the miraculous works God had done to validate the divine relationship of Jesus being in the Father while the Father was simultaneously in Him, Jesus made a truly spectacular promise of a life filled replete with miracles. The promise was spectacular in at least two ways. First, the promise applied to more than just the eleven Jewish disciples in the upper room that night. The promise was extended to all who believe in Jesus. And second, the miraculous works a believer in Jesus would do might sometimes be greater than the miraculous works Jesus Himself had done during His earthly ministry leading up to that night in the upper room.^[xxix]

According to Jesus, these two ways would become reality because He was about to return to the Father.^[xxx] His return to the Father would accomplish a couple of significant things: the Spirit being sent to take up permanent and powerful residence in all believers in Jesus,^[xxxi] plus a reinstatement of the glory the Son had with the Father before the world was. This returned glory meant, in part, that Christ would become omnipresent in a spiritual body so He could actually indwell (or, abide in) many believers worldwide at the same time.^[xxxii]

The Greater Works Of Believers

Remember, Jesus’ promise of sometimes doing works greater than He had done was made to all who believe in Him. What might constitute those “greater works” all believers would do?

Understanding the “greater works” begins with understanding the sad and helpless plight of the human race. Sin, that began to spread through the one man Adam, contaminates all humanity—exclusively through the male at conception—permeating every cell and fiber of the human body. As the individual matures, sin compels, without exception, its host to commit an act of sin thereby separating an individual’s spirit from God.^[xxxiii] This separation (not an annihilation) is biblically termed “death:” first spiritual death and ultimately physical death. Furthermore, via committing an act of sin, indwelling sin gains mastery over the individual’s life; the individual becomes a perpetual and permanent slave to indwelling sin.^[xxxiv] Finally, the human spirit separated from God becomes a readily available path for Satan to access the individual’s body.

Since Jesus was without a biological father, sin had not spread to Jesus’ body at conception so as to force Him to eventually commit a sin. Jesus was neither a slave of sin, nor a candidate for indwelling by Satan.^[xxxv] In this way, Jesus was unique among all humanity following the fall of Adam. Therefore, any miraculous works Jesus manifested—like loving His disciples—did not require God’s Spirit to direct His power to overcome sin in Jesus’ body.^[xxxvi] Using Pauline terminology, Jesus had no “law of sin and of death”^[xxxvii] in His body.

On the other hand, all believers (each infected with, and potentially enslaved by, indwelling sin throughout physical life) were promised the permanent indwelling of God’s Spirit. Part of the Spirit’s ministry to manifest love for another believer would require a significantly greater role than His ministry in Jesus when the Lord displayed love for His disciples.^[xxxviii] To state this in an alternate way, the same works God did through Jesus, and would do through believers in Jesus,^[xxxix] were greater works in the believers’ case because of the Spirit having to overcome sin’s power and deception that can infect—sometimes permanently—all believers’ physical bodies. Eternal life is an every moment miracle (by grace through faith) greater even than the more dramatic miracles Jesus did like walking on water!

Conclusion

Jesus’ new commandment for His disciples to love one another was “new” because of the source and quality of the commanded love. The Father abiding in Jesus was Jesus source and quality of love for His own disciples. In a similar pattern and based on a new covenant from God, the disciples in whom Jesus would abide as Lord could, obediently, love one another from the same source and of the same quality as did Jesus.^[xl]

The mystery of obedience—Christ in you—was hidden in the new covenant, and initially related only in passing by Jesus while teaching in the upper room. Later, Jesus’ vine/branch metaphor provided a more detailed description of the critically important abiding relationships.

The love shown by believers would be a greater supernatural work than Jesus’ love for His disciples because the Spirit of God had to dispense the Father’s love (through faith) from a human body naturally dominated by indwelling sin—a condition absent from Jesus’ supernatural signs and works.

penultimate addenda

Jesus did not describe explicitly in the upper room how the new covenant promises would become activated and functional in His disciples, probably because the “how” would depend upon the details of His death and resurrection. We would be remiss if we did not explore briefly the issue of how. Paul described how in Rom. 6:8-16.

Believers are born again, alive to God in Christ Jesus (see End Note 10 for the mechanics of rebirth). Being in Christ Jesus means believers have renounced keeping law themselves and have presented themselves as bond-servants to Christ as their Lord.^[xli] Christ then directs the believers’ members to bear fruit for God.^[xlii]

Remember, Christ is always obedient to God’s law. His obedience, manifested by the Spirit through believers’ faith, is perfectly pleasing to God.^[xliii] In Paul’s letter to the saints in Rome, he referred to such a manifestation in all nations as “the obedience of faith.”^[xliv]

Christ’s obedience becomes activated and functional simply through the believers’ faith in God’s gracious new covenant promise to cause His people to walk in His statutes and observe His ordinances. The mystery of new covenant obedient living is abiding in Christ (Lordship) and His abiding in the believer (the bond-servant manifesting Christ’s intrinsic nature or characteristics) by faith. This is how fulfillment of Paul’s “motto from Habakkuk” becomes reality: “. . . But the righteous man shall live by faith.”^[xlv]

addenda

To husbands at Ephesus, Paul wrote: “. . . each individual among you also is to love his own wife even as himself [emphasis mine]. . .” (Eph. 5:33). In light of our discussion about the source and quality of a believer’s love being God, one might anticipate that Paul would have avoided using the phrase “even as himself” to characterize a husband’s love for his wife. However, two facts come to mind that help to explain Paul’s characterization.

First, Paul had just prayed for all at Ephesus that Christ might dwell in their hearts through faith resulting in their being rooted and grounded in Love.^[xlvi] A husband’s heart so rooted in Love meant that his love for his wife would originate with God as the source and quality of that love.^[xlvii]

Second, the Ephesian husbands in Christ were “new creatures.”^[xlviii] No longer would the husbands be subject to their old quixotic humanity inherited from Adam. The husbands’ ‘new-creaturely being’ included, at least: a new birth with a new heart that could believe God; having been forgiven of their sins, and being set free from enslavement to indwelling sin; changed from sinners to saints; having clean consciences; adopted as sons of God; being vessels in whom the Godhead dwelt; having the Holy Spirit that prayed for them, led them, filled them, and put to death indwelling sin’s practices at their behest.

These two facts, Paul’s prayer and the husbands’ new selves, may have made Paul comfortable in using the old covenant formulation of “oneself” to characterize how one is to love.

end notes

^[i] “By this [i.e., loving one another] all men will know that you are My disciples . . .” John 13:35. The disciples’ mutual love would indicate to all observers that their message and manners were not their own but originated in Jesus. Unless otherwise noted, all biblical citations refer to the New American Standard Bible (NASB), 1995.

^[ii] Luke 22:11-20; John 13:21-14:31; 1 Cor 11:23-26. The order of events in the upper room is taken from Bruce, F. F. The Gospel of John. Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1983, 293-294. Actual new covenant inauguration followed Jesus’ death and resurrection at the celebration of Pentecost.

^[iii] Luke 12:32.

^[iv] Ezek. 36:27: “. . . [I will] cause you to walk in My statutes and you will be careful to observe My ordinances.” Also, cf. Jer. 31:33: “. . . [I will] put My law within them [My people] and on their heart I will write it . . .” Significant portions of Jesus’ actions and words in the upper room and the ensuing trip to Gethsemane stem from God’s new covenant promises, providing a backdrop for the Son’s new commandment to love one another.

^[v] Justification for such liberty of reading later epistolary material into the gospel material of John, Chapters 13-17 comes from Jesus’ comments in John 14:26.

^[vi] For Jesus’ teaching about entering the kingdom, see John 3:3, 5.

^[vii] Luke 22:20.

^[viii] Ezek. 36:25-27.

^[ix] The disciples would begin to understand about foot washing as Jesus’ teaching in the upper room and beyond progressed (John 13:7). The disciples were to follow Jesus’ example of forgiving Judas Iscariot by forgiving one another (John 13:15; cf. Col. 3:13). For an excellent discussion on forgiveness from the upper room, see Stedman, Ray C. Secrets of the Spirit. Old Tappan: NJ, Fleming H. Revell, 1975, pp. 18-20, endorsed by Boice, James M. The Gospel of John. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1978, vol. 4, pp. 30-33.

^[x] John 13:19: “. . . because I live, you will live also.” In Rom. 6:3-7, Paul described the mechanism of new life derived from Jesus’ death/resurrection as being baptized by the Spirit into Jesus’ death (i.e., stone heart removal) and resurrection (i.e., new heart and spirit implantation). Paul’s teaching paralleled God’s new covenant description to Ezekiel as “heart removal,” as well as implants of “a heart of flesh” plus “a new spirit,” reported by the prophet in 36:26.

^[xi] Cf. John 14:16-17, expanded upon by Jesus in John 15:26; 16:7, 13-14.

^[xii] John 14:15: “If you love Me (likely a reference to being the disciples’ Lord, cf. 13:13), you will (not “must”) keep My commandments.” The verb “will” is not an imperative! Jesus’ declaration was a promise. Salvation from enslavement to indwelling sin, and thus the promise of obedience, derives from Jesus’ Lordship in believers’ lives, cf. Rom. 10:5-10.

^[xiii] John 13:34. Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB), 1999.

^[xiv] Lev. 19:18.

^[xv] Matt. 22:36-40.

^[xvi] Luke 10:26-27.

^[xvii] Luke 10:30-37.

^[xviii] The definition of biblical love is: giving something good to meet the needs of another, unconditionally and sacrificially. Some examples of biblical love are: God gave His Son for salvation of Jews and gentiles; the Son gave Himself for the Father; Jesus gave Himself for the believer; the believer gives himself for the Lord. Paul would delineate in detail the quality of new commandment love. See 1 Cor. 13:4-8a. Note Paul’s last statement about love in the Corinthian passage is that, “Love never fails.” Human love limited by one’s own self can fail, particularly due to the powerful proddings or control of indwelling sin. However, God’s love never fails. Here is a hint of how Jesus had loved the eleven disciples—that is, absent any influence from indwelling sin or personal agenda, and by the power of God’s Spirit.

^[xix] Cf. 1 Cor. 11:1; 1 Thess. 1:6. The imitation may well be that of living according to indwelling, or abiding, deity.

^[xx] John 14:8.

^[xxi] John 14:9. Jesus’ rebuke of Philip may be because He had already said as much about seeing God, recorded by John in 12:45.

^[xxii] John 14:10b-11a. Note: being “in” something biblically means that one’s members are under the direction and control of that entity; having something “in” one means that the entity’s intrinsic nature or characteristics are displayed through one’s members.

^[xxiii] A biblical mystery was something unknown, or unheard of, from the Old Testament writers (Col. 1:26). John 14:20 described a relationship not found in the Jewish Bible. Jesus expanded His teaching about the mystery of the abiding relationships with Him, and its foundational significance for obeying the new love command, through the vine/branch metaphor in John 15:1-17. The significance of the mystery is, “. . . apart from Me you can do nothing”—like loving one another. Paul confirmed this mystery in his letter to the Colossians: “. . . Christ in you, the hope of glory” Col. 1:27. Glory likely involves rewards at the judgment seat of Christ (2 Cor 5:10; 2 John for the “obedience of faith” (Rom. 1:9; 16:25-26).

^[xxiv] John 14:10.

^[xxv] Rom. 13:8-10. Cf. also Gal. 5:14.

^[xxvi] Deut. 18:15-22.

^[xxvii] Mark 4:39.

^[xxviii] Cf. Acts 2:22.

^[xxix] John 14:12.

^[xxx] John 14:10-12.

^[xxxi] John 14:16-17; 16:7.

^[xxxii] John 17:5 recorded Jesus’ prayer to His Father for return of the glory which was once His before the world was. In 1 Cor. 15:45, Paul probably confirmed the restored glory, revealing Jesus became a life-giving spirit who would not only be life to believers physically alive, but also provide a resurrection (or translation via the rapture) of the natural body in a new spiritual sin-free body.

^[xxxiii] Rom. 5:12: “Therefore, just as through one man (emphasis mine) sin entered the world, and death through sin, also thus [through one man] it [sin] began to spread to all men on the basis of which all sin.” Author’s translation based on McClymont, J. C. An Exegetical Commentary on Romans 5:12. Unpublished paper, dated June 2004, revised and expanded from a December 2004 essay formerly titled, An Analysis of Romans 5.12. The June 2004 paper may be found on http://www.mcclymont.org. For a comprehensive study on the propagation of indwelling sin throughout the human race, see Custance, Arthur C. The Seed of the Woman. Brockville, Ontario: Doorway Publications, 1980.

^[xxxiv] John 8:34.

^[xxxv] In the final hours of Jesus’ earthly sojourn, God made Jesus’ body a dwelling place for sin (2 Cor. 5:21). This likely took place in the Garden of Gethsemane (cf. Luke 22:43-44 with Heb. 12:2-4 where Jesus’ struggle was likely against indwelling sin). For an insightful commentary on Jesus’ Gethsemane’s struggle, see Krummacher, F.W. The Suffering Saviour. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1977 reprint, pp. 115-125. God had to implant Jesus with indwelling sin so that He could voluntarily die physically (cf. John 10:19; Heb. 7:27). The fact that Jesus revealed Satan had nothing in Him (i.e., no pathway through Jesus’ spirit for control) underscored the reality that, although indwelling sin was present, Jesus never committed an act of sin which would separate His human spirit from the Father. Resurrection confirmed that God freed Jesus permanently from indwelling sin (cf. Rom. 6:9-10). As an aside, the state of Jesus between the Garden and the eclipse transpiring while He was on the cross is comparable to the state of a every believer being led by the Spirit. So the writer to the Hebrews (4:15) could state, “For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as [we are, yet] without [committing a] sin.” The above-mentioned eclipse probably signaled the moment when the sins of the elect were placed upon Jesus—precipitating a momentary separation of fellowship with the Father (Mark 15:33-34).

^[xxxvi] Cf. Gal. 5:17 wherein Paul described the Spirit as “lusting against” sin dwelling in the believers’ bodies.

^[xxxvii] For the reality of the law of sin and death (“death” in this context meaning separation from God’s fellowship) in believers, see Rom. 8:2.

^[xxxviii] Jesus detailed further the Spirit’s ministry in John 16:7-15. For a Pauline description of the Spirit preserving life for the believer, see Rom. 8:13 where the Spirit must be depended upon to put to death the practices of indwelling sin in all believers. The Spirit’s ministry of putting to death sin’s practices is truly miraculous. Death to sin’s practices, which cannot be accomplished by believers, makes believers’ lives continuous miracles. The Life a believer has in himself/herself by faith (cf. John 6:53) is a lifetime work for the Spirit that is greater than Jesus’ works by the Spirit while ministering to His disciples.

This ministry of God’s Spirit in believers was unnecessary in Jesus’ life prior to the Passover supper that night.

Paul recognized miracles took place routinely in believers throughout the local churches in the Galatian region. His recognition was highlighted by the apostle’s question, “. . . does He who provides you with the Spirit and works miracles in you (emphasis and translation mine), do it by the works of the Law, or by the hearing of faith?” (Gal 3:5). Cf. Bruce, F. F. Commentary on Galatians. The New International Greek Testament Com- mentary, ed. W. Ward Gasque and I. Howard Marshall, Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1982, pp. 150-152. Bruce holds these miracles are likely the gifts of the Spirit (1 Cor. 12); however, “hearing of faith” did not cause manifestation of those gifts. Bruce does acknowledge the ethical ‘fruit of the Spirit’ that includes love.

^[xxxix] John 3:21: “. . . anyone who lives by the truth comes to the light, so that his works may be shown to be accomplished by God,” HCSB. The works of a believer, like loving another believer, are accomplished by God’s Spirit through the believer’s faith in God’s promise to do so.

^[xl] See Eph. 3:14-19 wherein Paul prays to the Father that the saints at Ephesus will, by faith, have Christ abiding in them so they will be rooted in love. In a thorough and compelling discussion, Hoehner rightly concludes: “Therefore, for the believer, the origin of this love is God’s love.” Hoehner, Harold W. Ephesians. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 2002, pp. 482-484.

^[xli] Paul used two metonymies of effect to describe the outcome of the bond-servant relationship with Christ as Lord. Paraphrasing, the first metonymy was ‘presenting oneself for obedience of obedience’—the effect, the second “obedience,” put for the One causing the effect, i.e., Christ (Rom. 6:16). Note: Paul described the first obedience in our paraphrase as “ obedient from the heart,” meaning simply “belief” (Rom. 6:17; cf. 10:10 for the heart being the organ of belief). The second metonymy was “. . . now present your members as slaves [bond-servants] to righteousness . . .,” the effect of righteousness put for the One causing the effect—Christ (Rom. 6:19).

^[xlii] Rom. 7:4-5.

^[xliii] Showing God’s approval: 2 Cor. 2:14-15a; 3:3a.

^[xliv] Rom. 1:5; 16:26.

^[xlv] Rom. 1:17, quoting Hab. 2:4.

^[xlvi] Eph. 3:14-19.

^[xlvii] 1 John 4:7.

^[xlviii] 2 Cor. 5:17.

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Jul

10

To Repent About Repentance

Filed Under repentance

Introduction

A section of evangelical Christendom has been sliced in two over the theological meanings of repent and repentance.^[i] Both sides hold points of validity,^[ii] but neither comprehends the significance of the words as used by the biblical writers in historical context. In a brief analysis, this essay will present the various meanings of the words in their biblical contexts. The intention is to shed some insight so the two sides might repent about repentance thereby perhaps promoting reconciliation.

Definition of the Verb Repent

Repentance is a noun related to the verb to repent. Unfortunately, in his dictionary, Noah Webster traced the origin of the English verb to repent to the Latin verb meaning, “to be sorry, to cause to be sorry.”^[iii] Some present day theologians have seized upon the concepts of regret or sorrow to nuance their understandings of repentance. The Greek Lexicon for the New Testament, however, has a more accurate biblical meaning for the verb: “to change one’s mind.”^[iv] Such a meaning demands a context to determine the subject about which one is changing one’s mind.

For example, the implications of changing one’s mind would be quite different if the context were a women’s shoe store as compared to a marriage ceremony in a church.

John the Baptist and Repent or Repentance

One of the first times the words repent or repentance appeared in the New Testament was at the outset of John the Baptist’s ministry—or, John the Immerser, as our messianic Jewish brethren sometimes refer to John so Bogomilsky and his crew won’t think that John was a Baptist. John’s Jewish birth and background shed some light on the context in which John used this word group.

John was the firstborn male child of Zacharias and his wife Elizabeth.^[v] Being a firstborn Jewish male qualified John as belonging to God because God had sanctified to Himself all the firstborn Jews after He struck down all the firstborn Egyptians in the land of Egypt.^[vi] However, God then took the Levites for Himself instead of all the firstborn among the sons of Israel.^[vii] Next, God gave all the Levites to Aaron and to his sons so that the Levites might help do the service of the tabernacle.^[viii]

Now John’s father, Zacharias, was a priest who had married a daughter of the priestly line.^[ix] So John belonged to God for service by virtue of being a descendant of Levi.^[x] In addition, John may also have been set apart to God from birth as a Nazarite.^[xi]

Being a descendant of Levi meant that John was eminently qualified as a priest who could prepare and offer the sacrifices before God in the Jerusalem temple services just as his father had done under the covenant God made with Moses.^[xii]

As reported in Matthew’s gospel, John came preaching to the Jews in the wilderness of Judea saying, “Repent (emphasis mine), for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”^[xiii] Notice John was in the wilderness distinctly removed from Jerusalem and the religious establishment living under the covenant of Moses; he did not preach or offer sacrifices in the Jerusalem temple. John also mentioned the kingdom was at hand. The kingdom could only refer to the future messianic kingdom written about by the Jewish prophets of the Old Testament.^[xiv]

Mark recorded that John’s preaching also included “. . . a baptism of repentance (emphasis mine) for the forgiveness of sins.”^[xv] John explained, “After me One is coming who is mightier than I . . .,” and “ . . . He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”^[xvi] The apostle Paul summarized John’s preaching thusly: “John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in Him who was coming after him, that is, in Jesus.”^[xvii]

Summary of Six Salient Points

Six points are most significant. First, John’s ministry did not take place in the temple where sacrifices were, simultaneously with his baptisms, being offered for forgiveness of Jewish sins. Second, John mentioned the messianic kingdom in which a new principle of governance would be instituted based on better promises than the old covenant^[xviii] currently being practiced by the Jews seeking baptism by immersion in the Jordan. Third, John mentioned the Holy Spirit’s activity, which pointed directly to the new covenant intended by God for kingdom citizenship.^[xix] Fourth, John specifically preached about forgiveness of sins in his gospel, just as God had alluded to forgiveness of sins in the new covenant promises.^[xx] Fifth, John came as the King’s herald proclaiming the King’s imminent arrival.^[xxi] And sixth, those baptized by John in the Jordan could form the initial contingent of Jewish citizenry for the kingdom.

Context of John’s Preaching

In this context, about what exactly was it John was preaching that the Jewish people should change their minds? About what should they repent?

The answer is clear. The old covenant was about to become obsolete.^[xxii] Hence, the Jews were to change their minds about where forgiveness of sins was to be found in God’s kingdom program (in the coming One) under the new covenant.

Formerly—that is, before John’s gospel—the only source of forgiveness was in the temple sacrifices ordered by God under the Mosaic covenant—the old covenant.^[xxiii] Consistently, for roughly fourteen hundred years—except for a short interruption forced by the Babylonian exile—Jews from adolescence to death had always looked to the blood of bulls and goats offered in the tabernacle or temple to provide forgiveness of their sins.^[xxiv] However, in John’s wilderness message—choreographed to be significantly separated from the temple sacrifices—the people were called upon to repent. Repentance meant change your minds about temple sacrifices and look to Jesus’ coming for forgiveness of sins. This was no small issue about which to change one’s mind.

Two groups in Jerusalem were definitely threatened by John’s preaching: one, the Pharisees who formed part of the nation’s leadership; and two, the priests and Levites whose ministry and income depended upon their role in the temple service.

The Pharisean leadership of Israel, the experts in the law, recognized what John was saying. They needed to determine ‘without prejudice’ the authority behind John’s claims. The Pharisees sent the ‘issue-neutral’ experts in the temple rituals of sacrifices—priests and Levites—to validate in ‘unbiased fashion’ John’s credentials for ordering a change of mind about so significant an issue of such staggering proportions.^[xxv]

The priests and Levites inquired of John if he were Elijah, perhaps because of John’s attire and diet.^[xxvi] All Jews acknowledged Elijah would be the harbinger of God’s dramatic change for Israel by heralding the kingdom’s arrival.^[xxvii]

It was said of Elijah that he would return the heart of the fathers to children.^[xxviii] This prophecy was nothing less than fulfillment of the promise of the new birth God gave Ezekiel under His new covenant.^[xxix] And according to the angel Gabriel, John was to come in the spirit and power of Elijah, “. . . to turn the hearts of the fathers to children . . .”^[xxx] Therefore, John’s God-given power was to prepare Jews for citizenship in the kingdom and likely was operative in making his message truly a mind-changer confirmed by their immersion in the river Jordan.

Finally, water baptism for those Jews divinely persuaded by John’s message was likely the public testimony of their change of mind about the old covenant source of forgiveness of sins and their initiation into the new covenant promise of cleansing from their sins’ defilement.^[xxxi]

Repentance for Unbelieving Jews of the Diaspora

The change of mind about forgiveness of sins no longer being a part of the temple service, and now being offered by God through belief in Jesus, had reached some of those Jews living in the land. But Jesus was cognizant of those Jews living in the Diaspora and the need to reach them as well with the message of repentance. So in His post-resurrection ministry, Jesus taught His disciples, “. . . that repentance for forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in His name in all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem.”^[xxxii] Of course, this was fulfilled in part by the new covenant servant Paul who began his missionary efforts by customarily going first to Jewish synagogues in the cities he visited.^[xxxiii]

Repentance of the Gentiles

Two groups of gentiles needed the message of repentance: those who had become proselytes to Judaism, and those who came out of the pagan cultures of idol worship. The first group of gentiles received the word that the Jewish sacrificial system was no longer operative through Peter’s sermon at Pentecost.^[xxxiv] Paul addressed the second group, for example, in Athens with the message to repent about idol worship.^[xxxv]

Repentance of Believers

Several examples exist in the New Testament where believers were called upon to repent. Most usually, these examples involved a change of mind about unseemly behavioral patterns so fellowship with the Father and His Son could be restored.^[xxxvi]

Conclusion

Repentance had great historical significance for first-century Jews because they lived in the transition period between the old and new covenants while priests still offered temple sacrifices for forgiveness of sins. To enjoy the promises of the new covenant, these first-century Jews had to change their minds—the biblical meaning of the noun repentance, and the verb to repent—about the inefficacy of the temple’s sacrificial system versus the efficacy of Jesus’ offer of forgiveness of sins through His death and resurrection.

Clearly, other uses of the two words applied to various groups in the New Testament. The understanding about that which a person was called upon to change his/her mind is spelled out in the biblical context within which the word group was used.

Perhaps the above discussion might cause some to repent about [the meaning of] repentance.

end notes

^[i] The two sides—one, lordship salvation; and two, free grace—are well represented respectively by, one: MacArthur, John F. The Gospel According to Jesus. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1988, pp. 32, 159-168, enthusiastically endorsed by J.I. Packer and James Montgomery Boice; and two, Hodges, Zane C. Absolutely Free. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1989, pp. 143-163 (particularly n. 12, p. 224) endorsed by Earl D. Radmacher and Luis C. Rodriguez.

^[ii] The free grace movement teaches that God gives eternal life through belief alone in Christ alone for forgiveness of sins. However, the movement fails to deal with the issue of salvation from enslavement to indwelling sin. On the other hand, lordship salvation teaches, in part, that one must confess Jesus as Lord of one’s life to be saved. The movement, however, fails to distinguish that lordship salvation is freedom from enslavement to indwelling sin and has nothing to do with becoming born again.

^[iii] Webster’s first meaning for repent is: “1: to turn from sin out of penitence for past wrongdoings, abandon sinful or unworthy purposes and values, and dedicate oneself to the amendment of one’s life <unless you ~ you will all likewise perish—Lk. 13:3 (RSV)>.” (Gove, P.H., ed. Webster’s Third New International Dictionary of the English Language Unabridged. Springfield, Mass: G. & C. Merriam Company, 1971, p. 1924). This citation reflects what happens when a lexicographer becomes strongly influenced by tendencies toward the theological.

^[iv] Bauer, Walter. A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature. Revised and Edited by Frederick William Danker, 3^rd ed. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2000, p. 640.1. The Greek verb is a compound word featuring the verb “to understand” (op. cit., p. 674.1) prefixed in composition with the preposition meaning, “change or difference” (Dana, H.E. and Mantey, Julius R. A Manual Grammar of the Greek New Testament. Toronto: Ontario, The Macmillan Company, 1955, §115.3). Hence, the Greek verb repent means to change one’s understanding or mind.

^[v] Luke 1:13.

^[vi] Num. 3:13; Exod. 13:2.

^[vii] Num. 3:41.

^[viii] Num. 3:5-9.

^[ix] Luke 1:5.

^[x] Num. 3:12.

^[xi] Luke 1:15; cf. Num. 6:2-3.

^[xii] Luke 1:8.

^[xiii] Matt. 3:1-2.

^[xiv] Not exclusively, nor exhaustively: Isa. 60:1-61:11; Jer. 31:31-40; 33:14-22; Ezek. 36:22-38; 39:25-29; Dan. 2:44-45; 9:24-27; Zech. 14:1-21.

^[xv] Mark 1:4.

^[xvi] Mark 1:7-8.

^[xvii] Acts 19:4.

^[xviii] Jer. 31:31-34; Ezek. 36:25-27; cf. Heb 8:1-13.

^[xix] Ezek. 36:27.

^[xx] Ezek. 36:25.

^[xxi] Luke 1:76; John 1:23, 30-34.

^[xxii] Transition to the actual inauguration of the new covenant included several events. Here is a possible list in somewhat of a chronological order: Jesus cursed the fig tree (a symbol for the Levitical priesthood) on the way from Bethany to the temple (Matt. 21:18-19), signaling a temporary suspension of the priesthood until immediately following the church’s rapture when the Jerusalem temple will be rebuilt and the priesthood reinstituted to continue throughout the messianic kingdom (Dan. 9:27; Jer. 33:18); next Jesus stopped the sacrifices in the temple confirming what He had just indicated symbolically (Mark 11:16); Jesus warned Israel’s leaders in a parable (Matt. 21:33-43) that administration of God’s kingdom would be taken away from them and given to other administrators (i.e., the church); then He symbolically inaugurated the new covenant at the Passover celebration with His eleven disciples in the upper room (Luke 14:17-20); in Gethsemane, Jesus was made sin so that He would be able to voluntarily assume the role of a sacrifice by dying physically (2 Cor. 5:21; Luke 22:42-44; Heb. 5:7; 12:4); on the cross He took on the sins of the elect as both high priest and sacrifice (Matt. 27:46); He was resurrected and likely presented His blood to His Father as atonement for both Jews and gentiles for all times (John 20:17; cf. 20:27; cf. also Heb. 9:23); about forty days after His resurrection, Jesus ascended to His Father (Acts 1:9) so that He might actually inaugurate the new covenant about ten days later at Pentecost by the gift of the Holy Spirit for each individual believer (Acts 2:33, 38), baptizing them into His death and resurrection for the new birth (Rom. 6:3-5), and into His body, the church (1 Cor. 12:13).

^[xxiii] Cf. Heb. 6:1 where the writer to the Hebrews labels repentance from dead works as a foundational truth for Jews seeking forgiveness of sins in Jesus under the new covenant. Heb. 9:1-14 touches on God’s change from old covenant sacrifices to the new covenant sacrifice, suggesting from the context that “dead works” refer to sacrifices under the old covenant.

^[xxiv] Heb. 9:7. On the basis of temple sacrifices, the apostle Paul could rightfully boast to the Philippians he was blameless before the righteousness in the law (Phil. 3:6).

^[xxv] John 1:19-21, 24.

^[xxvi] Mark 1:6; cf. 2 Kings 1:8.

^[xxvii] Matt. 17:10.

^[xxviii] Mal. 4:5-6. See below on end note No. 22.

^[xxix] Ezek. 36:26. Jesus chided Nicodemus about his ignorance of the new birth as recorded by John in his gospel (3:3-10).

^[xxx] Luke 1:17. Neither the definite article “the,” nor the possessive pronoun “their,” appears in the respective Hebrew and Greek manuscripts before the word “children.” English translators have added the article or pronoun because they have misunderstood Malachi’s prophecy and the quotation thereof in Luke’s gospel.

^[xxxi] Ezek. 36:25.

^[xxxii] Luke 24:47. The citation is the author’s translation, changing “to all nations” to “in all nations” based on a similar and grammatically accepted use of the same Greek preposition in Mark 14:9 which reads in the popular translations, “whenever the gospel is preached in the whole world.”

^[xxxiii] Rom. 16:26 for fulfillment. Rom. 1:16 and Acts 17:2 reveal Paul’s obligation to Diasporal Jews. Cf. 2 Cor. 3:6 for Paul identifying himself as a servant of a new covenant—an epithet Jews would readily recognize.

^[xxxiv] Acts 2:38: “Repent, and each of you (proselytes included, cf. Acts 2:10) be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.”

^[xxxv] Acts 17:16-31. The repentance for the gentile Athenians would involve a change of mind from making and worshiping idols to belief in the One resurrected from the dead.

^[xxxvi] Five such examples appear in the seven messages to the messengers serving the congregations mentioned in Rev., Ch. 2 and 3. One enlightening illustration occurred when Jesus issued a warning to repent in the context of spiritual apathy and indifference: “Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; be zealous therefore, and repent (emphasis mine)” (Rev. 3:15-16, 19; cf. 1 John 1:9).

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