Looking Forward to the Grace of God

 The Offerings of Israel

Book of Leviticus Chapter 16

Some fifteen hundred years before the Messiah came, Moses led the nation of Israel, called the Israelites, out of Egypt and a new nation was born.

Jehovah led them to Mount Sinai and then God gave to Moses the first five books of the same Bible we have today.

The Israelites were given the Civil Law, the Moral Law (The Ten Commandments), and the Ceremonial Law, in all 613 commandments.

We should remember that the Lord Jesus taught us that all those 613 laws could be reduced to two laws if we were to be sincere in our love for one another and our love for Him.

Mat 22:36  Master, which is the great commandment in the law? 

Mat 22:37  Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 

Mat 22:38  This is the first and great commandment. 

Mat 22:39  And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 

Mat 22:40  On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. 

We should remember these words of Jesus and let them guide us throughout all our lifetime!

We should consider that all these laws expressed the "righteous and the holy Character of Jehovah God"!

Even though these laws contained the standard for righteousness, without which no one could stand before our Holy God, no one could keep all those laws and God knew this and in reality, it was never expected.

These laws were our schoolmaster to teach about the Messiah and God's Grace.

In the end these laws served their purpose, and this purpose was to teach us that we all need Jesus Christ to be reconciled to our Heavenly Father. 

These laws were intended to reveal our sin and bring this entire world to the knowledge of guiltiness before a Righteous and Holy God.

Jas 2:10  For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all. 

Gal 3:10  For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them. 

Even though the Law spoke primarily to this new nation of Israel, it also bore this message to the entire world and especially the Church.

2Ti 3:16  All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 

2Ti 3:17  That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works. 

We must never be confused. The Law never offered salvation to anyone! 

The Ten Commandments of Moses and those other 603 laws only offered condemnation and damnation!

We might ask ourselves, why then as New Testament Christians, would we study this old book of the Old Testament.

The pure fact is, we can find the Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ, in the Old Testament and we find that in the Book of Leviticus, that all those worship services revolved around the Lord Jesus Christ and how He sacrificed Himself for us.

The greatest lesson of the Old Testament is that it teaches us the character, the love, and the Grace, of our Holy God!

We know that the Book of Leviticus is so named after the tribe of Levi who were the priests for the nation of Israel, just as every child of God is to be a priest and member of the Church after our salvation.

The sacrificial system in this great book points to our Savior and would fulfill every picture through His death on the cross on Mount Calvary.

When the Tabernacle was prepared, according to the Word of God, God began explaining how the worship by these Jews would lead them to the Messiah.

The first seven chapters of Leviticus will teach us about these things.

1) The burnt offerings gave prayers and praise to God the Father.

2) The meat-offering was a pleasing aroma to God the Father as are our prayers.

3) The peace offering demonstrated fellowship through sharing a meal. 

Salvation is all about our renewed fellowship with our Heavenly Father and with each other. Every child of God will one sit at the table with Jesus Christ at the marriage supper of the Lamb.

4) The sin offering was all about the atonement for our sins. The Lord Jesus atoned for all our sin on Mount Calvary!

5) The trespass-offering was about providing compensation for our trespasses against our Holy God. 

We have nothing of value to offer God for our sin. He sent His Son to do this for us!

Gen 22:8  And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together.

6) All animals were required to be without blemish as was our Savior.

2Co_5:21  For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

Eph 5:2  And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour.

Why? God never enjoyed the slaughter of animals!

Heb 10:6  In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure.

God does not take any pleasure in the slaughter of animals!

We must understand that our Holy God required a blood sacrifice, but it was never about those animals.

It was always about the Messiah!

This place called earth was created for humanity. In fact this entire universe was created for humans to show us the glory of Jehovah God.

Heb 9:22  And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission. 

Heb 9:23  It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. 

Heb 9:24  For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us: 

Heb 9:25  Nor yet that he should offer himself often, as the high priest entereth into the holy place every year with blood of others; 

Heb 9:26  For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. 

You see, there must be a forgiveness of our sin though we are not worthy of forgiveness!

There must then be a reconciliation to God, for our trespasses which we do not deserve!

Finally, we begin to see a picture of God's Grace.

So let us begin:

*****Lev 16:1  And the LORD spake unto Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they offered before the LORD, and died; 

Lev 16:2  And the LORD said unto Moses, Speak unto Aaron thy brother, that he come not "at all times" into the holy place within the vail before the mercy seat, which is upon the ark; that he die not: for I will appear in the cloud upon the mercy seat. 

We must understand that no one can approach our Holy God but according to His rules!

Someday into the future, God will show His wrath to this world, but He has provided a way to avoid seeing His wrath.

All people and even some angels will face the "Judgment" of God!

This is why we need to be reconciled to our Holy God before our death comes, and none of us have any idea when that day will be!

Col 1:21  And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled

Rom 5:10  For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.

You see, it is only Jesus Christ who fulfilled God's holy requirement!

Sin has separated us from God, and it began with Adam and Eve!

Yes, we all have a sin nature! Even that newborn babe!

We learned from the Book of Romans that our Holy God forbids us to continue in sin and He provided the only means of reconciliation and this by His Son, the Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Many are still looking for a messiah, but there could be no one else who could fulfill God's own requirements as was the Lord Jesus Christ.

You see, it was the Lord Jesus Christ who is the fulfillment of all Scripture!

John said Jesus was the Word of God in the flesh!

We see, in a very harsh manner, Aaron had seen that there is a wrong way to approach God and we should all be aware.

Aaron's two sons tried to approach God through self-righteousness, but we have no righteousness of our own and God killed them instantly.

Rom 3:10  As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:

Rom 3:23  For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; 

There is only one way to become righteous in the eyes of God and it is by the "Grace" of God!

Rom 3:24  Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: 

Rom 3:25  Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; 

Rom 3:26  To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. 

There was only one time each year that the High Priest (Aaron) could enter the Holy of Holies where the Ark of the Covenant was located, but these two sons of Aaron felt they could enter the Holy of Holies at any time, and it cost them their lives.

We must be able to see that Aaron the High Priest could only enter the Holy of Holies on the Day of Atonement.

The Lord Jesus Christ was sacrificed on the day of Atonement, and it is by His death that our sins are forgiven.

This is such an important day that God would never allow it to be abused by those who did not take it seriously!

There is a right way to approach God and there is a wrong way, but we have no righteousness of our own! No one did until the Messiah came!

Heb 10:19  Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, 

Heb 10:20  By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh; 

Heb 10:21  And having an high priest over the house of God; 

Heb 10:22  Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.

*****Lev 16:3  Thus shall Aaron come into the holy place: with a young bullock for a sin offering, and a ram for a burnt offering. 

Lev 16:4  He shall put on the holy linen coat, and he shall have the linen breeches upon his flesh, and shall be girded with a linen girdle, and with the linen mitre shall he be attired: these are holy garments; therefore shall he wash his flesh in water, and so put them on. 

Lev 16:5  And he shall take of the congregation of the children of Israel two kids of the goats for a sin offering, and one ram for a burnt offering. 

Lev 16:6  And Aaron shall offer his bullock of the sin offering, which is for himself, and make an atonement for himself, and for his house. 

Lev 16:7  And he shall take the two goats, and present them before the LORD at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. 

Lev 16:8  And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats; one lot for the LORD, and the other lot for the scapegoat. 

Lev 16:9  And Aaron shall bring the goat upon which the LORD'S lot fell, and offer him for a sin offering. 

Lev 16:10  But the goat, on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat, shall be presented alive before the LORD, to make an atonement with him, and to let him go for a scapegoat into the wilderness. 

In the Old Testament there was a specific preparation to be observed by the High Priest.

Today, the Holy Spirit prepares every Pastor and every child of God, in the study of the Word of God and Prayer after our salvation.

We also know that the High Priest of the Old Testament were to be a symbol, a picture of the Lord Jesus Christ.

We know that when it came time the Lord Jesus Christ did not back away from His role as High Priest to the Church.

In this passage we see these sacrifices pertain only to the High Priests of the nation of Israel.

1) He had to be prepared to offer the right sacrifices! Any deviation could cost him his life!

A young bull for the Sin Offering.

A ram for a Burnt Offering.

We know the Lord Jesus had no sin and did not have to make a sacrifice for Himself. 

It was the Day of Atonement that our Lord Jesus was sacrificed upon that cruel cross!

2) He had to wash himself and he had to wear the right clothing. Note washing never sanctified anyone. It was only a picture of the regeneration by the Holy Spirit.

He had to remove the beautiful clothing of the High Priest and put on a special clothing, and it is the High Priest where we first see britches in the Bible and there was a specific reason for this.

This white linen clothing represents the righteousness of our Savior!

All the Jews wore robes!

The Hight Priest was never to have the appearance of sin and when the High Priest climbed the stairs to the Altar of Sacrifice then we see a robe could reveal a little too much and nakedness was considered a very great sin since the time of Adam and Eve's sin and their sin was covered by the sacrifice of a lamb.

Today, God tells each of us to never have even the appearance of doing evil.

This clothing of the High Priest was made of linen and symbolized righteousness. 

To stand by God each priest had to project sinless righteousness!

Linen was made from the flax plant, but it can also be made from hemp. 

Maybe, this is the true reason God gave us the hemp plant and not for the drug effect.

3) He had to prepare the right sacrifices for the people!

He had to get two male goats for the Sin Offering and a ram for the Burnt Offering.

One goat to be sacrificed.

The other goat would be taken deep into the wilderness to be set free.

This is a picture of our sin being removed from us forever.

Mic 7:19  He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us; he will subdue our iniquities; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.

4) Aaron had to be prepared to offer sacrifices for himself and his household.

He had to offer a bull for his own Sin Offering.

Note: Christ our High Priest had no sin and did not have to make an offering for Himself.

Heb 9:7  But into the second went the high priest alone once every year, not without blood, which he offered for himself, and for the errors of the people: 

Heb 9:8  The Holy Ghost this signifying, that the way into the holiest of all was not yet made manifest, while as the first tabernacle was yet standing:

Heb 7:27  Who needeth not daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, and then for the people's: for this he did once, when he offered up himself. 

Heb 7:28  For the law maketh men high priests which have infirmity; but the word of the oath, which was since the law, maketh the Son, who is consecrated for evermore.

5) Aaron had to always be prepared to offer the right sacrifice for the people. The casting of the lot insured that man did not choose so the results would have to be the choice of Jehovah.

Pro 16:33  The lot is cast into the lap; but the whole disposing thereof is of the LORD.

The lot was always resorted to by the Jewish Priest with strictest reference to the interposition of God, and as a method of ascertaining the divine will, and in serious cases, of doubt.

Hence it was also the method used to determine chances or preferences, or to decide a debate. 

The decision by lot was often resorted to among the Jews, but always with the strictest reference to the interposition of God.

The High Priests had to always be ready to present that chosen scapegoat to the Lord!

The High Priest was to be a symbol or a picture of the Lord Jesus Christ!

Two goats were used in the Sin Offering because no single picture can fully demonstrate what the Lord Jesus Christ has done for us!

**The goat that was sacrificed symbolized the sacrifice of Christ, the ransom price He paid to set us free from sin.

**The goat that was set free was sent alive bearing the sins of the people, symbolized the removal and the taking away of sin, no more visible to our Holy God. 

We know the Lord Jesus took all our sin to Hell the place designed for sin and the father of all sin the Devil.

This is a picture of what our Savior has done for us! 

He paid our Sin Debt that we could not pay and has made us free from sin forever!

We must understand that the Lord Jesus Christ was our Substitute!

Jesus Christ died for my sins, so I do not have to die for them myself!

2Co 5:21  For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. 

This was the only way we can obtain the "Righteousness" that is required to stand before God the Father.

He bore all our sins, all the sins of everyone who has ever lived in this entire world!

1Pe 2:24  Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed. 

1Pe 2:25  For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls. 

The doctrine of "Substitution" is important in that through the Lord Jesus Christ's death, the righteous demands of our Heavenly Father have been met!

This was a legal transaction, which means, it was God's own requirement to deal with the sin problem of all humanity in this wicked world.

It is by this action of our Savior, that we have been redeemed and are now the servants of God!

1Co 7:23  Ye are bought with a price; be not ye the servants of men. 

1Co 7:24  Brethren, let every man, wherein he is called, therein abide with God. 

Since we are bought by the blood of Jesus, then we are truly His slaves!

Slaves to the world is a terrible thing, but being a slave to our Savior is a wonderful thing!

We have been removed from the curse of this world!

Gal 3:13  Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree: 

Gal 3:14  That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. 

What was the blessing of Abraham?

Gen 12:2  And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: 

Gen 12:3  And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. 

We are bought by the blood of the sacrifice of our Savior and now have hope!

1Pe 1:18  Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; 

1Pe 1:19  But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: 

1Pe 1:20  Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you, 

1Pe 1:21  Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.

1Th_1:3  Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labour of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father;

We have become a special possession of our Savior!

Tit 2:14  Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works. 

This is why the true Christian is so noticeable to this world and why the world hates us so much!

We that believe have been reconciled to God!

The barrier that was once between us and our God, has been removed!

Col 1:20  And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven. 

Col 1:21  And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled 

Col 1:22  In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight:

These are all things we can learn from the Book of Leviticus and the books of the Old Testament.

It was humanity that moved away from God, and it is still happening!

It is humanity that needs to be reconciled to God to renew our fellowship with our Holy God and then God will heal our lands.

2Ch 7:14  If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. 

As Christians we are the people of God. 

The one thing God expected from the Jews and now expects from the Church is for us to represent Him accurately to the world.

We cannot do this if we refuse the study of the Word of God including the study of the Old Testament!

Amen

Make Jesus Your King

 Jesus Was Recognized as a King

Book of Matthew Chapter 2

It will become clearer to us as we study the life and times of Jesus Christ, that we will see a great number of prophecies that were directly fulfilled in His birth, in His life, in His ministry, and in His death.

This cannot be said of any human being in all of time! Remembering the Jesus the Christ was 100% human and 100% God.

We will see some events in this chapter of Matthew that are not recorded in any of the other Gospels, considering the Gospels to be the first four books of the New Testament.

The Devil had been waiting for the Messiah to be proclaimed and He had finally come, and we will see where Satan did do all he could to kill Christ Jesus while He was still a baby.

God would not allow this to take place! 

We must understand Joseph did not flee with the child of the virgin Mary to keep him from being killed, God would not have allowed this to happen. 

The prophecies must be fulfilled in order for us to trust the Word of God!

God will do according to His Word and God does not have to change His plan according to what the world does! 

God already knows what will happen in this world in any given moment!

God is not sitting in Heaven wondering what He will have to change today!

All the power of God was packaged inside this Babe born in Bethlehem!

Just as the "Wise Men" found out, if you are seeking Jesus for salvation you will always be able to find Him, at least during the Church Age, which may soon come to an end. 

The coming of the Magi. 

Magi were high priests or wise men, maybe even kings themselves, who probably lived amongst the Persians. 

Some would say magicians, and medicine men, and astrologers and the occult. 

Others would say they were interpreters of dreams and omens, necromancers and such people who deal with falseness of Satan.

Many of them were seekers of the truth but not able to accept the truth of God!

Even today such people exist and thrive in this lost world.

Seeking the truth is one thing but ignoring the truth is dangerous to your soul! The Word of God is 100% true!

2Th 2:11  And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: 

2Th 2:12  That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness. 

What we should think on, is the fact that the occult world knew of the Messiah while He was ignored in Jerusalem by so-called high priests of Judaism.

*****Mat 2:1  Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, 

King Jesus was born in Bethlehem just as prophesied!

Mic 5:2  But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting. 

There was more than one Bethlehem so the prophet many years before Jesus was born called the right one at Ephratah.

Bethlehem Ephratah was the city where most all the sacrificial lambs were raised for the services at the Temple in Jerusalem.

This Bethlehem was only six miles from Jerusalem.

It was the birth home of King David:

1Sa 16:1  And the LORD said unto Samuel, How long wilt thou mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from reigning over Israel? fill thine horn with oil, and go, I will send thee to Jesse the Bethlehemite: for I have provided me a king among his sons. 

It was prophesied to be the birth site of the Messiah: Micah 5:2

Joh 7:42  Hath not the scripture said, That Christ cometh of the seed of David, and out of the town of Bethlehem, where David was? 

All Jews knew these facts.

All Scribes knew these facts.

All Pharisees knew these facts.

All Jewish scholars knew these facts.

This Herod was also known as Herod the Great.

Herod was not a Jew but an Idumaean and appointed King by Rome.

Herod was not Jewish by birth, but he was Jewish in his faith.

Herod made Judaism to be the state religion to keep out Greek mythology.

These wise men were from the East, probably Persia.

We cannot claim to be wise if we are not seeking the truth!

They were probably influential men of learning and authority and most probably the skilled scientist of their day.

It is thought they were some priestly order of Persia, the ministers and advisors to the Persian rulers.

At this time Persia would be the remnants of Iraq and Iran that great empire had fallen to Alexander the Great and then Rome.

They were seeking King Jesus!

*****Mat 2:2  Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him. 

Notice they had seen "His Star". The star of the King who was born of the Jews.

The Lord Jesus Christ was a Jew in His flesh.

We should not believe that these Magi did not know the politics of the world at this time, they had witnessed the Greek Empire how it had destroyed the Persian rule and how Rome now ruled the world.

We could say that they were more familiar with the prophecies of Daniel than were the rulers of Jerusalem.

They knew this star had nothing to do with Herod and Herod nor his family were Jews.

King Jesus would not be born in Jerusalem but only according to the prophecies of God! The Prophecies of God are the Promises of God!

It is evident that they had lost track of the star that they had seen.

The city of Jerusalem at that time had many religious institutions and also the Temple which Herod was trying to showcase to the world.

There was the priesthood of Aaron that had also been taken over by outsiders by the politics of Rome so that government could interfere with religion.

This is what governments do, they interfere when that religion is Christianity!

There was no room for Jesus in Jerusalem alive or dead! By God's providence it was not yet time for Jesus to be King!

Jer 23:5  Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. 

Jer 23:6  In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS. 

Any mention of a Jewish King did cause Herod sleepless nights.

*****Mat 2:3  When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. 

Herod was never born to be king. Herod was appointed to be king and he was a puppet king under the control of Rome.

Herod was always in fear for his throne and the news of a Jew who was born to be the King of the Jews did not set very well with him.

Any uprising by the Jewish people could certainly cost him his puppet throne!

The Jewish people also knew that any fear Herod had, meant more cruelty, more bloodshed, and more rebellion and more suffering for them.

A suffering people under a corrupt government is not good for anyone, but especially the innocent as we are beginning to see under the government we now have.

I hope those who put this government in office will feel the full force of corrupt leaders. It is the only way things will change!

Those Jews who did know the truth were praying for the Messiah who would be as King David and set Israel free, but this was not God's plan at this time.

They were only a few in number.

These Magi were not Jews, not Israelites, but were Gentiles and we get to see the beginning of Gentiles who will accept the truth of God.

We should understand that this Herod had already slain five of the Maccabean princes and princesses including his favorite wife Mariamne eliminating any claim they had to the throne and then also two sons of Mariamne which were his own sons.

This Herod was a wicked man, and the people of Jerusalem did not want to see any more of his cruelty.

This Herod was also without the knowledge of the Scriptures.

Sounds like those in power in America today.

*****Mat 2:4  And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born. 

This foolish and corrupt and wicked puppet king could not have ruled this religious people for he did not care to learn anything about Judaism.

He believed the only way he could control this people was by tyranny, when it would have been far better to get to know the way they think.

He had to gather together, he had to find some Bible (Scriptural) scholars, who good search out the truth for him.

It was these same people who hated the truth of the Messiah and would hate the Lord Jesus Christ.

Mat 16:21  From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day.

The religious leaders of that day hated the Lord Jesus just as they do today.

Herod called only those religious leaders who were on his side. This is the same thing our own government does today, most of them being false.

Herod then demanded an answer to his question and notice that even the false religious leaders know about the Messiah who they hated.

All of them so afraid they would lose the prestige of their position and the riches they exploited from the people.

*****Mat 2:5  And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet, 

Mat 2:6  And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel.

They all understood the details of the "Coming of the Messiah" as if they had been researching because of the prophecies of Daniel.

Notice they had head knowledge, but they were not moved by the truth of this Scriptural Prophecy.

We will see that none of these so-called religious leaders were interested enough to go to Bethlehem to see if these things were true.

We could believe that this star that led these wise men from the east to Christ had been burning brightly for at least a year and had gone unnoticed by all religious circles.

God's plan does not ever take a day off, but continues to move toward its climax!

The one thing we can see is that the words of the prophets had been preserved even though this may have a been Chaldean version of the Scriptures.

Look what Isaiah wrote by the Holy Spirit:

Isa 60:1  Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee. 

Isa 60:2  For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. 

Isa 60:3  And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising. 

These priests and scholars were only five miles from Bethlehem, and they would not even take the time to go see if the Messiah had been born even though some men from the East had traveled many hundreds of miles to see if the true King of the Jews had been born!

That sneaky, crafty, murderous Herod put his own plan together.

*****Mat 2:7  Then Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, enquired of them diligently what time the star appeared. 

This question was only important to Herod and not anyone else!

What we have learned over the many years is that wicked and corrupt leaders try to cloak their evil designs, and this will be one the greatest traits of the Antichrist.

The new stimulus packaged is open for viewing but it has almost 600 pages of twisted and turned words to camouflage what is hidden in it.

At least one man is trying to force it to be read. Try to read it and you will see what I mean, as these corrupt politicians try to deceive those who are trying to do good.

Herod put his plan together in an attempt to deceive these men from the East, wise or not wise.

I do not trust that wicked Pelosi no more that these wise men should have trusted Herod.

The truth is God cannot be deceived, whether you believe on Him or not!

God will not be mocked!

We sometimes believe that these wise men arrived at the birth of Christ, but this is not true.

These wise men did not realize they would have to search for baby Jesus, thinking all of Israel would be happy at this event.

Jesus had been born in Bethlehem according to the Scriptures, and now his parents, Joseph and Mary had found a place to live in Bethlehem.

They had found a house and lived there.

The message that the wise men gave to Herod was that the Star of Jesus had appeared as much as one year but no more than two years before their arrival in Jerusalem.

How do we relate this today?

For instance we would love to find Jesus in all of our government rulers, but search as we can and He is not found but in a few though most all of them claim salvation, including our President and most all Senators and Congress. They are liars because the Bible says we will know them by their works and their works go against the Word of God.

It is the same for many a so-called Churches today. You can go seeking the Lord Jesus Christ and you will not be able to find Him. Not in the building and not in the church members.

If there is no proof of the Holy Spirit working in the church members, then you will not find the Lord Jesus Christ.

Jas 2:19  Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble. 

Jas 2:26  For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also. 

Why do the Democrats hate Christians? 1Jn 3:12  Not as Cain, who was of that wicked one, and slew his brother. And wherefore slew he him? "Because his own works were evil, and his brother's righteous".

Because the platform of the Democrats is wicked and corrupt, and the "TRUE" church is "Righteous"!

It was the same with Herod. He was determined to kill the Lord Jesus Christ!

He told these travelers from the East to seek out this babe born to be King and send him word of his location.

*****Mat 2:8  And he sent them to Bethlehem, and said, Go and search diligently for the young child; and when ye have found him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship him also. 

Mat 2:9  When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was. 

This is the same message that needs to be preached today.

We all need to be diligently seeking the Lord Jesus Christ and He is not hard to find!

Notice now the Star of Jesus reappears and leads them to the home of Joseph and Mary and Jesus who will one day be King of kings and Lord of lords.

1Ti_6:15  Which in his times he shall shew, who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords;

Rev_17:14  These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful.

Rev_19:16  And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.

These wise men found Jesus in Bethlehem and not Nazareth, but he would not be there for very long as other prophecies had to be fulfilled.

Again we see that only these wise men went in search for Jesus, the religious leaders in Jerusalem did not have faith in the Word of God.

There is a whole lot of typology here about the Gentiles.

Act_9:15  But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel:

These wise men were Gentiles seeking diligently the Lord Jesus Christ and God led them to Him with a Star.

What do we know? 

We God know will meet the need of anyone who faithfully searches for Jesus.

We know that God will bless those who continue to seek the Lord Jesus without quitting.

Not many are seeking the Lord today and time is running out in the Church Age!

2Co 6:2  (For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.) 

When they saw that God was leading them, they rejoiced.

*****Mat 2:10  When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. 

Today we have allowed a plague to cause us to stop seeking the Lord.

Today we have allowed a plague to take our Christian joy away from us.

Today we have allowed a plague to come between us and our God.

This makes this plague an "idol"!

We should be more like these wise men!

Rom 15:9  And that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy; as it is written, For this cause I will confess to thee among the Gentiles, and sing unto thy name. 

Rom 15:10  And again he saith, Rejoice, ye Gentiles, with his people. 

Rom 15:11  And again, Praise the Lord, all ye Gentiles; and laud him, all ye people. 

Rom 15:12  And again, Esaias saith, There shall be a root of Jesse, and he that shall rise to reign over the Gentiles; in him shall the Gentiles trust. 

Rom 15:13  Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost. 

And then they finally found who they were seeking.

*****Mat 2:11  And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh. 

Is obvious that some time had passed since baby Jesus was laid in a manger.

We will learn that Jesus was at least one year old but not more than two years old.

Joseph had found a house where Mary could recover, and Jesus could grow to be well enough to travel.

This the place that the star had led these visitors from the East.

Notice as soon as they saw Jesus, they fell down to worship Him.

If you ever meet Jesus, you will know you have met the Savior who will soon be King of this world.

All the power of God was in that toddler!

It was customary to bring gifts when meeting eminent persons who were visited.

**Gold for a King

Gold is obvious. It has been the store of value for thousands of years. It is rare and difficult to accumulate. It is easy to work into shapes or very thin sheets. And it does not rust or corrode. All of these recommend it as a store of value and its use is all over the Old Testament books of the Bible, especially in the description given for building the temple and the Ark of the Covenant. 

Solomon’s vast wealth is described in the amount of gold he accumulated. If you want a real eye-opener, here is a little research on just how much wealth Solomon collected each year in gold: $1.2 billion dollars! 

It is no wonder that gold was the Old Testament symbol of kings. Thus, when the magi brought gold to honor Jesus, they were proclaiming him king. 

More, they were proclaiming him to be the ultimate king, in their eastern tradition, the “King of kings.” 

It could have been used by Joseph and Mary to buy their escape into Egypt? Perhaps Jesus gave it to the poor. We simply do not know.

**Frankincense for a High Priest

The high priest of Israel burned incense in the Temple on the Day of Atonement.

The smoke of the incense was intended to fill the Holy of Holies and hide God who dwelt on the mercy seat between the cherubim in order that the high priest might be there in the presence of God without dying. 

To see God was to die. The incense was intended to save the high priest from death. Even the formulation of the incense had to be exact (Exodus 30:34). To burn anything else or to use a proscribed source of flame was “strange fire” and was punishable by death (Leviticus 10:1).

Therefore, when the magi brought frankincense to Jesus, they proclaimed him to be their high priest. The importance of this second gift is difficult to overstate. In the Old Testament tradition, the kings came from the tribe of Judah, while the priests came from the tribe of Levi. Thus, the two powers were to be kept separate. 

Yet, in the birth of Jesus, the two powers were combined and the presence of the two gifts together foreshadows Jesus’s role as both king and priest for the people. 

This is explained more fully in the New Testament book of Hebrews when the author claims that Jesus is of the order of Melchizedek, who was both priest and king to his people.

**Myrrh for a Sacrifice

The last gift of the magi, myrrh, is the most solemn, but no less prophetic. An embalming oil, Myrrh symbolized the Christ’s mortality as a man. Imagine bringing a gift to the Messiah proclaiming his suffering and death. 

It would seem unethical to bring the gift myrrh to the reigning King and High Priest of all creation!?

There are two interesting connections to myrrh to be found within the New Testament. The first is that the name Mary has myrrh as its root. 

Her name also turns out to be prophetic. When she presented Jesus at the temple, Simeon prophesies over Jesus and tells Mary that a sword will pierce her own heart as well. 

A second use of the word myrrh is found in the Book of Revelation. When John is given the seven letters to seven churches, there is one church whose letter tells of suffering and persecution even to the point of death. The church is Smyrna, whose name comes from the root word myrrh.

With this last gift, the magi proclaimed that all three powers God had ordained in the Old Testament had come together in the birth and person of Jesus Christ and would be fulfilled. 

1) Gold proclaimed Him to be our king, the one who would rule over his people, and indeed the whole of creation, forever and ever. 

2) Frankincense announced that He would be our high priest, intervening with God, Himself, on our behalf, offering prayers and intercessions for us.

3) Myrrh reveals to us that our King and Priest, God forever, was somehow a mortal man would also serve as our prophet, a man who would die in the place of his people.

We all need to take the time to study of the gifts of the magi, it is a study without end! (Much of this borrowed from a short study)

God first warns these men from the East who may have been kings themselves.

*****Mat 2:12  And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way. 

We should understand that no one upon this earth had or has the power to destroy the Lord Jesus Christ, even as a babe.

For our Heavenly Father, the Scriptures and the Prophecies of the Bible had to all come to be true just as they are written in order for us to trust all the Bible.

We must also understand that Satan, the prince of this world who guides all wicked and corrupt governments and all leaders in high places, did everything he could to kill Jesus all the days of His life!

God would not let this happen because the Lord Jesus came to die, but He came to die of His own will and by His own circumstances.

There was a cross waiting for our Savior, and He would be there when the time was right.

Herod had been plotting to find and kill Jesus since he had first met with these "wise men" from the East. 

Herod would not allow anyone to make any attempt, to take his throne.

He would try to add the Lord Jesus to the names of all those he had already murdered.

It is a terrible thing when governments will do anything to try to keep what they believe is power.

We see this in the USA today as the Democrats write laws and do all they can, to try to remain in power whether it be legal or not, whether it brings harm to others or not. We know Satan is behind it because they also insist on stopping the Church from speaking the Word of God.

These things are so obvious, yet they do not try to hide it. They have become very bold!

These so-called wise were wise enough not to defy the warnings of God, but they did defy the words of Herod and Herod was not a happy ruler.

1Co 3:18  Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you seemeth to be wise in this world, let him become a fool, that he may be wise. 

1Co 3:19  For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, He taketh the wise in their own craftiness. 

1Co 3:20  And again, The Lord knoweth the thoughts of the wise, that they are vain. 

It was time also to warn Joseph.

*****Mat 2:13  And when they were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him. 

God would not allow Herod to kill Jesus so it was best for Joseph to take his family and flee and because of prophecy Egypt would be the place to flee to.

God always does according to His written word!

We know that our God knows the thoughts of all people and He certainly knows the thoughts of wicked and corrupt leaders such as this Herod.

God knew this Herod would not give up his search for Jesus so Joseph would keep his family hidden until this Herod was dead.

Many Jews had fled from tyranny and Joseph would have found help in Egypt and carpenters could always find work.

We should remember many Jews had been scattered around the world since before the time of Nebuchadnezzar.

The sad part of this is that this Herod sent his army to Bethlehem and slew all the children from two years and under according to the information he had gotten from those visitors from the East, which fulfilled still yet another prophecy.

Jer 31:15  Thus saith the LORD; A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping; Rahel weeping for her children refused to be comforted for her children, because they were not. 

We should be amazed by the accuracy of the written Word of God.

When Herod was dead, an angel came to Joseph and told it was time to leave Egypt.

Joseph still afraid for the life of his adopted son Jesus instead of going back home, He went to Nazareth.

The Lord Jesus Christ grew from babe to manhood in Nazareth.

We should be able to see the great love Joseph had for his family and his adopted son.

We should also know the Jesus was a Nazarene not because of some vow but because He came from Nazareth even though from a babe in a manger till the day of His cross, the Lord Jesus Christ had no sin in His life. 

Jesus did not have to make a vow to have no sin, Jesus just refused to allow sin in His life.

Those wise men recognized the Lord Jesus as King.

Herod was afraid the Lord Jesus would become King and sought to kill Him.

The Lord Jesus Christ is King of kings and the entire world will one day see the truth of King Jesus!

Amen

It Is Better To have Never Been Born Than to Reject Jesus Christ as God

The Saved in the Great Tribulation

Book of Revelation Chapter 7

As we move on into Chapter 7 we find answers to a lot of questions for those who have been taught some things that are not true. The one most important thing is that there will be many saved during the Tribulation period and most of those during the time called the "Great Tribulation" as this chapter makes us aware of.

In fact, I do not believe God will reject anyone at any time if they call upon the Lord with a pure and honest heart!

I personally believe that not any who have rejected the Lord during the Church Age will be saved during any part of the Tribulations years.

2Th 2:10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.

2Th 2:11 And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:

2Th 2:12 That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.

Today in many areas of America there are many who have not ever heard of Jesus Christ and the Gospel, and America has become a great mission field and it is the same in many other nations and it is a sad thing.

This shows just how weak the Church has become in doing the one thing the Lord ask us to do.

Mat 28:18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.

Mat 28:19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:

Mat 28:20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

Though these future saints will suffer through much of the Seven Years of the Tribulation they will also be saved because no one at the White Throne Judgment will be able to stand before the Lord Jesus Christ and say, "I never got the opportunity".

Mat 24:14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.

There is not one prophesy in the true Scriptures that will go unfulfilled by the end of Armageddon!

Many today just do not have all the truth!

In reality, Chapter 7 of the Book of Revelation is a break between the things of the sixth seal and the things of the seventh seal, and John gets a full view of this picture so we will all be able to understand.

One of the greatest problems in the modern Church is that those who are saved or think they are saved, do not have that same desire for all others to be saved.

Remember the Laodicean Church Age ended with the Church never returning to be on fire for Christ and the ministries of the Church just about stopped.

The Lord will remind us of these things at the Judgment Seat of Christ.

We had forgotten why the Lord left us here upon this earth and even today before these things come to past, we are living in the "Days of Sorrows".

Joh 16:20 Verily, verily, I say unto you, That ye shall weep and lament, but the world shall rejoice: and ye shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into joy.

Joh 16:21 A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because her hour is come: but as soon as she is delivered of the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for joy that a man is born into the world.

Joh 16:22 And ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you.

Isa 25:8 He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth: for the LORD hath spoken it.

Isa 25:9 And it shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, and he will save us: this is the LORD; we have waited for him, we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation.

Let us just see what John saw.

*****Rev 7:1 And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree.

Rev 7:2 And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea,

Rev 7:3 Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads.

If we know one thing about our Savior, it is that He is never caught off guard. He never sits and thinks about what He is going to do next.

No matter what the world thinks and no matter what the Church thinks, the Lord God Jehovah always has His true believers.

By this time we already know the Church is in Heaven and the Judgment Seat of Christ has already taken place. The Lord has presented His Church to His Father, but someone is missing.

There are promises that have not been yet fulfilled.

We have an example in the Scriptures.

God is speaking to Elijah:

1Ki 19:1 And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and withal how he had slain all the prophets with the sword.

1Ki 19:2 Then Jezebel sent a messenger unto Elijah, saying, So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I make not thy life as the life of one of them by tomorrow about this time.

1Ki 19:3 And when he saw that, he arose, and went for his life, and came to Beersheba, which be-longeth to Judah, and left his servant there.

1Ki 19:4 But he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree: and he requested for himself that he might die; and said, It is enough; now, O LORD, take away my life; for I am not better than my fathers.

1Ki 19:5 And as he lay and slept under a juniper tree, behold, then an angel touched him, and said unto him, Arise and eat

1Ki 19:18 Yet I have left me seven thousand in Israel, all the knees which have not bowed unto Baal, and every mouth which hath not kissed him.

Remember the Prophesy of Elijah?

Rom 11:1 I say then, Hath God cast away his people? God forbid. For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.

Rom 11:2 God hath not cast away his people which he foreknew. Wot ye not what the scripture saith of Elias? how he maketh intercession to God against Israel, saying,

Rom 11:3 Lord, they have killed thy prophets, and digged down thine altars; and I am left alone, and they seek my life.

Rom 11:4 But what saith the answer of God unto him? I have reserved to myself seven thousand men, who have not bowed the knee to the image of Baal.

Rom 11:5 Even so then at this present time also there is a remnant according to the election of grace.

And Malachi:

Mal 4:5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD:

Mal 4:6 And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.

John saw four Angels standing on the four corners of the earth, which would be North, South, East, and West and no, this does not mean the earth is square.

These Angels would bring about the most devastating "Climate Change" this world will have ever seen. These things will be added to all the other things that are already going on in those seven years of Tribulation, and will be in fact the last years of those seven years called the "The Great Tribulation".

By the way it is only the Lord who can cause “climate change” and not people!

Before these Angels unleash this devastation those servants of God must be sealed. Not by the Holy Spirit but by this Angel which means they cannot be harmed by the Antichrist and his followers during this time of their great work.

The Lord says the servants of God must be sealed. These servants of God are His secret weapon that no one upon the earth knew about, not even Satan!

The Lord Jesus explained this to the Apostles.

Mat 24:31 And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

Mat 24:32 Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh:

The fig tree is about to bloom in Israel. It will not bloom during the Church Age!

We should understand that until the Angels seal these 144,000 no one knew who they were and at the same time once they are sealed, everyone will know who they are. Jehovah will not hide this fact for the Hebrew Children. They will be sealed in their forehead only, not upon their hands.

Rev 14:1 And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father's name written in their foreheads.

We should also understand in the same manner the disciples of the Antichrist will be sealed either in the forehead or their right hand.

Rev 13:16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:

Rev 13:17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.

Rev 13:18 Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.

*****Rev 7:4 And I heard the number of them which were sealed: and there were sealed an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel.

Rev 7:5 Of the tribe of Juda were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Reuben were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Gad were sealed twelve thousand.

Rev 7:6 Of the tribe of Aser were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Nepthalim were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Manasses were sealed twelve thousand.

Rev 7:7 Of the tribe of Simeon were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Levi were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Issachar were sealed twelve thousand. Rev 7:8 Of the tribe of Zabulon were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Joseph were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Benjamin were sealed twelve thousand.

These 12,000 of each tribe will be the literal seed of Abraham through Isaac, through Jacob.

Again there are no lost tribes of Israel and though they remain are scattered, Jehovah knows the whereabouts of each and every one of them!

Notice the Angel in charge of this whole thing does ascend from the east. The "Day Star".

2Pe_1:19 We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:

The Sun of Righteousness:

Mal 4:1 For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.

Mal 4:2 But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall.

Mal 4:3 And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the LORD of hosts.

They will realize the Coming of the Messiah, they had been looking for all these years!

Of all the lists of the tribes in the Scriptures since the time of the Exodus from Egypt, this one is different as are many others, but here the Tribe of Dan is omitted and also the tribe of Ephraim.

The names of Joseph and the name of Levi are substituted. We can understand this by understanding the truth of God.

Deu 29:18 Lest there should be among you man, or woman, or family, or tribe, whose heart turneth away this day from the LORD our God, to go and serve the gods of these nations; lest there should be among you a root that beareth gall and wormwood;

Deu 29:19 And it come to pass, when he heareth the words of this curse, that he bless himself in his heart, saying, I shall have peace, though I walk in the imagination of mine heart, to add drunkenness to thirst:

Deu 29:20 The LORD will not spare him, but then the anger of the LORD and his jealousy shall smoke against that man, and all the curses that are written in this book shall lie upon him, and the LORD shall blot out his name from under heaven.

Deu 29:21 And the LORD shall separate him unto evil out of all the tribes of Israel, according to all the curses of the covenant that are written in this book of the law:

These are things that Dan and Ephraim are guilty of, and when the Holy Spirit gave these words to Moses, He meant what He said.

God will never repent from the things He has written down in the Scriptures which means all translations must be very careful not to change what the Holy Spirit has said, or they are no more than perversions much like the Codex Sinaiticus that was altered by the Jesuits while it was not even an old Scripture but the writings of some Greek, who was hired to make a personal copy of the Scriptures for some Russian. This is the truth!

These tribes allowed Jeroboam to set up those golden calves to be worshipped.

1Ki 12:26 And Jeroboam said in his heart, Now shall the kingdom return to the house of David:

1Ki 12:27 If this people go up to do sacrifice in the house of the LORD at Jerusalem, then shall the heart of this people turn again unto their lord, even unto Rehoboam king of Judah, and they shall kill me, and go again to Rehoboam king of Judah.

1Ki 12:28 Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold, and said unto them, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem: behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.

1Ki 12:29 And he set the one in Bethel, and the other put he in Dan.

1Ki 12:30 And this thing became a sin: for the people went to worship before the one, even unto Dan.

Note, these tribes are also in the list that will be in the Holy Land in the Millennial Kingdom.

The sealing of these 12,000 from each tribe has its own purpose in the plan of God during the Great Tribulation years.

So after this sealing, we see the purpose of this sealing.

*****Rev 7:9 After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands;

Rev 7:10 And cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb.

Rev 7:11 And all the angels stood round about the throne, and about the elders and the four beasts, and fell before the throne on their faces, and worshipped God,

Rev 7:12 Saying, Amen: Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen.

Will they be those that are saved during the Great Tribulation when the Antichrist is so brutal along with those that follow him. You bet there will be!

Notice that are not just Jews or Hebrews. They are from all nations, all kindreds, all peoples, all tongues and they are standing before the throne of the Lamb of God.

They had palms in their hands as in the as in the "Feast of the Trumpets".

In a sense, the purpose of the "Feast of the Trumpets" was to awaken these people from their "spiritual slumber" and prepare them for the solemn humiliation of the "Day of Atonement"!

Joe 2:15 Blow the trumpet in Zion, sanctify a fast, call a solemn assembly:

Joe 2:16 Gather the people, sanctify the congregation, assemble the elders, gather the children, and those that suck the breasts: let the bridegroom go forth of his chamber, and the bride out of her closet.

Joe 2:17 Let the priests, the ministers of the LORD, weep between the porch and the altar, and let them say, Spare thy people, O LORD, and give not thine heritage to reproach, that the heathen should rule over them: wherefore should they say among the people, Where is their God?

Joe 2:18 Then will the LORD be jealous for his land, and pity his people.

This day had finally come.

Salvation to "Our God" and unto "The Lamb". Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, sweetest name I know!

What do the Angels do? They do what they always do.

Luk 15:10 Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.

Of course the Church did join in, and the Beasts, as we all fell on our faces to worship our God Jehovah, and the Lamb, the Lord Jesus Christ.

All the Church had made it to Heaven.

There is no God except Jehovah God and there is no salvation but by the Lamb of God!

John was watching all these things so he could write it all down that we might have this wonderful Book of the Reveling of the Lamb!

John asked and one of the Elders answered.

Where did all those Saints of God come from? Here is our answer.

*****Rev 7:13 And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they?

Rev 7:14 And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

To understand the Great Tribulation we have to go back to the missing week from the Prophet Daniel.

Dan 9:26 And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.

Dan 9:27 And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.

When we total the weeks from the Prophet Daniel, we can account for the time till the first coming of the Messiah. From the time of Christ's First Coming and until Chapter 4 of the Book of Revelation we have the Church Age which ends at the "Rapture of the Church".

It is then we begin the missing week of the Prophet Daniel which are the years called Tribulation or the time of Jacob's Trouble.

Jer 30:7 Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob's trouble; but he shall be saved out of it.

Jer 30:8 For it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD of hosts, that I will break his yoke from off thy neck, and will burst thy bonds, and strangers shall no more serve themselves of him:

Jer 30:9 But they shall serve the LORD their God, and David their king, whom I will raise up unto them.

When the Church has been called out (Revelation Chapter 4) then the Antichrist will begin his rule upon this earth. The first three and a half years will be terrible to many, but the Jews will live in relative peace and actually be able to use the rebuilt Temple for the old practices that ended with the destruction of Herod's Temple.

But then comes the remaining three and a half years which will be called the "Great Tribulation".

The Antichrist will become a terror to the Jews and most all of the world at that time. Destruction and murder will be the daily theme of his government.

Mat 24:21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.

Mat 24:22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened.

This Great Tribulation would have brought the end of life upon this world if the Lord Jesus does not step in to put a stop to it.

Finally after spending all these years people will begin to realize that maybe there is a God who cares.

Those 144,000 Jewish preachers will be spreading the "Gospel of Jesus Christ" all over the world and remember they are sealed and under the protection of the Angels.

Dan_12:1 And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.

They will begin to believe.

Heb 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

And they will be saved.

Those that are saved will also die and this is that group of Saints that John is now seeing in Heaven's Throne Room where they will be comforted.

Their robes made white by the Blood of the Lamb!

Most of these are Jews and they will now do what Jehovah ask of them since the time of Abraham.

*****Rev 7:15 Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them.

We know that the Holy Spirit took the Church home to Heaven at the sound of the Trumpet, because He lives within each of us.

This does not mean the Holy Spirit did not go back to do the work as He did in the Old Testament.

These that were saved were still under Holy Ghost conviction when they accepted that Jesus is the true Messiah.

These were all saved because they believed the "Gospel" of the Lord Jesus Christ!

We can see that most of these are Jews and the Lord will fulfill His promise to them.

Exo 29:45 And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will be their God.

Exo 29:46 And they shall know that I am the LORD their God, that brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, that I may dwell among them: I am the LORD their God.

Are they any more special than the other Saints of God? No they are blood bought children of God just as the rest of the Saints in Heaven.

Some believe that this is the Millennial Kingdom, but this is just Heaven and what are some of the great things about Heaven?

*****Rev 7:16 They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat.

Rev 7:17 For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.

The fulfillment of another promise.

2Co 4:14 Knowing that he which raised up the Lord Jesus shall raise up us also by Jesus, and shall present us with you.

2Co 4:15 For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God.

2Co 4:16 For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.

2Co 4:17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;

2Co 4:18 While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.

It is not always easy to be a Christian and it is also true it is not easy to be a Jew in many places and it been that way for them for thousands of years.

We all know that sin has interfered with our relationship with our Heavenly Father, but the benefits of Heaven make it all worth the choice of choosing Jesus before it was too late.

Psa 103:1 Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name.

Psa 103:2 Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits:

Psa 103:3 Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases;

Psa 103:4 Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies;

Psa 103:5 Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle's.

Psa 103:6 The LORD executeth righteousness and judgment for all that are oppressed.

The "benefits" of choosing Jesus Christ are just too wonderful to describe after a life upon this small planet, the only place life thrives but even this life on this planet will not always continue.

Choose Jesus before it is too late to choose!

Hell is a real place!

Heaven is a real place!

Choose Heaven!

Joh 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

Joh 14:7 If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.

Amen