From Riches to a Shepherd

Joseph and his Brothers

Book of Genesis Chapters 36 through Chapter 38

As we go through these last lessons in the Book of Genesis, we need to remember the time these children spent in Mesopotamia.

How they witnessed the envy and jealousy of the wives of their father.

How two sisters were locked in a bitter feud over them as they were born.

How their grandfather had treated their father Jacob so deceitfully.

How in all their time had had not seen much love from their parents and their grandfather.

They had witnessed envy and jealousy and strife all their days.

We can just imagine how these mothers had taught hatred.

And then Jacob got in on this thing by choosing to show favoritism to Joseph because he was born of Rachel the only wife he truly loved.

This is no way to raise children and we will begin to see some of the results of these things in our lesson today.

Did God also show favoritism to Joseph or does God just try to show how He cares for abused children?

The life of Joseph is expressed in many words in the rest of the Book of Genesis and there are many lessons we can learn from these chapters of Joseph's life.

Israel would soon need an earthly savior and God chose Joseph to be that earthly savior.

Joseph is a prime example in the Old Testament of what a Christian should be in the New Testament!

Joseph was raised in a wealthy home, but he spent many years as a slave before rising to a place of power.

As a slave he worked hard enough to become the manager of his master's estate.

As a prisoner he worked so hard he became manager of the prison.

As a man of God, he was called upon to give spiritual guidance to Pharaoh and became second in command of Egypt.

All these things happened because he was a willing servant of God!

What did the Apostle Paul teach us?

Php 4:11  Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. 

Php 4:12  I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. 

Php 4:13  I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me. 

Joseph never took his eyes off the Lord at any time in his life!

We must also never forget that Joseph was just a sinner used by the Lord to accomplish certain things.

Joseph became the deliverer of Israel as Israel grew from a family into a nation!

God has a plan for each one that He saves if we will be just as willing as Joseph, and be content as Paul no matter our circumstances.

We may be called upon to do many things in these last days.

We must completely understand though many things happen that we do not agree with, the Almighty God is the supreme Ruler of this world!

We must never blame Jehovah for the way the world is going, we must accept that God knows what He is doing and do the work he gave us to do right up till the sound of the trumpet.

God is the Sovereign Ruler of this world that He created that we are in the process of ruining.

*****Gen 37:3  Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age: and he made him a coat of many colours.

The first thing we see is that Jacob is still showing favoritism in this family, this time aimed at Joseph.

These other sons and daughters have witnessed these things all their days.

When you have one father and four different mothers there will be problems in the house as each mother tries to do the best for her own children.

Favoritism causes division within the home. It did then and it does now!

When Joseph was old enough, he began feeding the flocks along with his other brothers.

We know Israel was rich and richness was counted by the number of animals he owned in that day and Israel had many animals.

From the stories of Laban and his daughters we found that Jacob was good with animals and his sons would have learned from him.

Joseph was with his brothers trying to learn the skills necessary to be a shepherd. 

The truth is Israel (Jacob) should have had more sense than to single out Joseph for special treatment as he had been a part of these sort of things all his own life and it was multiplied as he had spent 20 years with Laban and been misused himself.

Joseph was his favorite son because Rachel was his favorite wife, and all the children knew these things to be true.

For God's own plan, he had equipped Joseph with some skills it did not seem his brothers had but we know God does not show favoritism to anyone, especially His own children, whom we are.

We all play a part in the plan of God for this world and He is making all the arrangements for our future home with Him in His House.

We are all different and we all have different skills, but it is how we use those skills that can be a benefit in the work of the Lord.

Once we are saved then the Holy Spirit will decide what else we need, and He may even increase those skills we have or turn us to an entirely different set of skills.

Now we cannot be sure just what a coat of different colors would look like, but we can be sure none of the other children who were all grown men at this time had one like it.

And it being hand made by dad made it even more hated by the others.

It was a rich looking garment of royalty that a shepherd would have no need of, but it is here where we can see in typology our Savior.

Our Savior took off the robes of royalty to put on the coat of a shepherd.

Php 2:5  Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: 

Php 2:6  Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: 

Php 2:7  But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: 

Php 2:8  And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. 

Joh 17:5  And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was. 

None of these things set well with Joseph's brothers.

Here again we will see another type of Christ as He came to His own and was rejected by them.

*****Gen 37:4  And when his brethren saw that their father loved him more than all his brethren, they hated him, and could not speak peaceably unto him. 

As we already know from previous Scripture, Jacob loved Rachel far above his other wives.

No doubt all the other boys who were now grown men had lived in this scenario all their days. 

They had been eyewitnesses to the deceit of Laban their grandfather.

They had been eyewitness to the envy and jealousy of Leah and Rachel because they lived in the middle of it.

They now witnessed the favoritism of Jacob toward Joseph.

Joseph was partially beloved for his mother's sake.

But Joseph was the only son who was at home with his father during Israel's older years as Joseph had just turned 17.

And no doubt Joseph was just special in his ways and just a little bit different from the other boys.

When Jacob started dressing Joseph in finer clothes, it just brought all these things to a head and we already know "envy" brings with it, untold sin.

Pro 27:4  Wrath is cruel, and anger is outrageous; but who is able to stand before envy? 

In a family we are born to help one another, and we should take this mindset out into the world, but envy causes us to destroy one another, even if they are close family.

Joseph's 10 brothers hated him so much that they could not even speak to him in words of peace. They could not offer him peace. They could not even wish him well.

Then God steps in with prophetic dreams.

*****Gen 37:5  And Joseph dreamed a dream, and he told it his brethren: and they hated him yet the more. 

Gen 37:6  And he said unto them, Hear, I pray you, this dream which I have dreamed: 

Gen 37:7  For, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, my sheaf arose, and also stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves stood round about, and made obeisance to my sheaf. 

We do not know if Joseph could feel the presence of the hatred of his brothers.

We can be sure that Israel (the man) did not realize just how much Joseph was hated by his brothers and we see that the mothers are not even written about which means that the Holy Spirit did not think it relevant to tell us about their ways at this time.

We can be sure this was not a happy family!

We know the future of Joseph so we can only say that God was already preparing Joseph for his future.

We should understand that God will always prepare us for some future part of His plan if we make ourselves “teachable” and “available” as our Pastor preached just recently.

If we already think we know everything then God cannot teach us anything about the truth.

We know that Joseph told his dream to his brothers, but Joseph never got the opportunity to interpret his dream as they did this themselves.

We should understand that it was the sons of the two handmaids that had become concubines that Joseph was telling his dream to.

These four young men probably felt less love from their father Israel than them all.

This dream did not set well with them according to their own interpretation.

We know from the Scriptures that they did indeed bow down to Joseph once Pharaoh had made Joseph second in command of all Egypt.

Gen 42:6  And Joseph was the governor over the land, and he it was that sold to all the people of the land: and Joseph's brethren came, and bowed down themselves before him with their faces to the earth. 

Gen 42:7  And Joseph saw his brethren, and he knew them, but made himself strange unto them, and spake roughly unto them; and he said unto them, Whence come ye? And they said, From the land of Canaan to buy food. 

Again, we find that these things are written more for the Church than for these sons of Israel.

We also can see that when Joseph knew his brothers, he spoke rough to them as they had to him all their

days when he was a young teenager.

We can see that these four brothers of the handmaids had it in their mind that Joseph would never get the opportunity to rule over them, they would kill him first.

*****Gen 37:8  And his brethren said to him, Shalt thou indeed reign over us? or shalt thou indeed have dominion over us? And they hated him yet the more for his dreams, and for his words. 

If you have read the entire Book of Genesis you know that these sons of Israel had made the right interpretation of Joseph's dream.

Gen 42:6  And Joseph was the governor over the land, and he it was that sold to all the people of the land: and Joseph's brethren came, and bowed down themselves before him with their faces to the earth. 

On the day of the dream, they knew Joseph could not rule over them because they would not allow it under their own power.

If Jacob made Joseph to be the head of the family, they would not ever agree with Joseph!

Joseph was despised even more.

Joseph was hated even more.

Makes us think of the days of Jesus Christ.

We are told that the Lord Jesus Christ will one day rule this entire world.

Every knee will bow to Him!

Rom_14:11  For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.

All those who already despise the Lord, certainly hate Him even more when they are told that they will bow to the Lord Jesus Christ.

Satan goes berserk when you tell him this!

Satan still has a belief that he can defeat Christ Jesus and so do his followers. They are so confused to the truth.

The truth will still hold to be the truth and every soul that has ever lived will bow to the Lord Jesus Christ!

Php_2:10  That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;

The true Church, that is hated today will be even more hated on the day of the Rapture.

We can just imagine how much hate boils over at the resurrection of the dead and they face the Lord God Judge of Righteousness.

Rom_1:4  And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead:

Mat 22:31  But as touching the resurrection of the dead, have ye not read that which was spoken unto you by God, saying, 

Mat 22:32  I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living.

But Joseph dreamed another dream.

*****Gen 37:9  And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more; and, behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me. 

Gen 37:10  And he told it to his father, and to his brethren: and his father rebuked him, and said unto him, What is this dream that thou hast dreamed? Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to bow down ourselves to thee to the earth? 

This dream is similar to the first one in that it was Joseph who his family would bow to.

In the Bible we know that most all dreams were prophecy of some future event.

Jacob (Israel) had such dreams and though he rebuked his son, he did observe the saying of his son.

Was Joseph being cocky? Was Jacob rebuking Joseph to ease the hatred of his other sons?

This dream is a similar dream to the first and it insured the truth of the first dream.

Gen 41:32  And for that the dream was doubled unto Pharaoh twice; it is because the thing is established by God, and God will shortly bring it to pass. 

Joseph could say this to Pharaoh because he had experienced it himself.

What we must realize is, that God is working behind the scenes to carry out His own will. He is still doing this today and He will continue until things reach their peak as described by the prophets and by the Book of Revelation.

Just as God put things in place for Joseph and Mary to go to Bethlehem to fulfill prophecy, God is putting things in place with Joseph and his family to fulfill prophecy.

What had God told Abraham.

Gen 15:13  And he said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years; 

Gen 15:14  And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge: and afterward shall they come out with great substance. 

God used a teenage son of Jacob to get these things started.

None of his brothers could understand what was happening, but they too would be used of God and they did not even realize it.

His brothers had decided to get rid of Joseph and God used them to do this thing.

They would not be allowed to kill Joseph.

Watch how God's plan  works.

*****Gen 37:23  And it came to pass, when Joseph was come unto his brethren, that they stript Joseph out of his coat, his coat of many colours that was on him; 

Gen 37:24  And they took him, and cast him into a pit: and the pit was empty, there was no water in it.

Notice these four sons of the handmaids who hated Joseph and would have killed him, while the remaining sons were satisfied just to get rid of him and not kill him, but these to also despised that coat made by their father.

Envy could have caused murder, but it also would cause their own father to suffer for many years when they all knew the truth.

For 21 years they allowed their father to mourn for Joseph even though they knew what happened to him!

In typology we know that the Lord Jesus Christ was stripped of His robe.

Psa 22:18  They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my vesture. 

Mat 27:28  And they stripped him, and put on him a scarlet robe.

Also in typology we see the pit as a place called Hell.

Rev 20:1  And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. 

Rev 20:2  And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, 

Rev 20:3  And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season. 

Hell is also a place without water!

Luk_16:24  And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.

All the lost have a fear of the pit!

Isa_24:17  Fear, and the pit, and the snare, are upon thee, O inhabitant of the earth.

Those bound for Hell have rejected the truth of God.

Isa_38:18  For the grave cannot praise thee, death can not celebrate thee: they that go down into the pit cannot hope for thy truth.

Joseph would be saved from the pit or from Hell, just as every born again, child of God, because of the "Grace of God"!

Isa_38:17  Behold, for peace I had great bitterness: but thou hast in love to my soul delivered it from the pit of corruption: for thou hast cast all my sins behind thy back.

We can also see this pit as the empty grave of the Lord then Reuben found this pit to be empty.

The grave of Jesus is still empty!

The enemy will deliver Joseph to the auction block as a slave.

*****Gen 37:28  Then there passed by Midianites merchantmen; and they drew and lifted up Joseph out of the pit, and sold Joseph to the Ishmeelites for twenty pieces of silver: and they brought Joseph into Egypt. 

If not for these seed of Ishmael, Joseph may have been left in that pit to die. 

God’s plan was to safely get Joseph to Egypt so He provided transportation!

We see that where envy reigns there is no pity!

Humanity is forgotten when envy reigns.

Have we not seen all these things the last few months in our elections?

Those who have envied and hated president Trump, have not just shown that hatred, but they certainly will not show pity and they want his life destroyed.

Why do not the American people see this and put a stop to it?

The brothers of Joseph continued until Joseph was completely out of their site and out of their lives, or so they thought.

We see malice is like a deadly poison.

Pro 27:4  Wrath is cruel, and anger is outrageous; but who is able to stand before envy? 

Joseph had begged his brothers for his life, but their ears were closed.

Only Reuben seemed to have some feelings for his younger brother.

*****Gen 37:29  And Reuben returned unto the pit; and, behold, Joseph was not in the pit; and he rent his clothes.

It may have been Reuben's plan to slip away to do something and then return to get Joseph out of that pit and take him to safety, but the others may have caught on.

Gen 37:22  And Reuben said unto them, Shed no blood, but cast him into this pit that is in the wilderness, and lay no hand upon him; that he might rid him out of their hands, to deliver him to his father again. ?

It is also curious to see that it was Judah who suggested to sell Joseph.

Gen 37:25  And they sat down to eat bread: and they lifted up their eyes and looked, and, behold, a company of Ishmeelites came from Gilead with their camels bearing spicery and balm and myrrh, going to carry it down to Egypt. 

Gen 37:26  And Judah said unto his brethren, What profit is it if we slay our brother, and conceal his blood?

It was also a Jew who betrayed the Lord Jesus Christ for silver.

Life was just not precious enough in those days and we live in a world where life is not very precious today.

This is why the Lord teaches us to choose life because all that Satan has is death.

Deu_30:19  I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live:

Reuben had warned his brothers about harming Joseph, but they had paid him no attention.

Gen_42:22  And Reuben answered them, saying, Spake I not unto you, saying, Do not sin against the child; and ye would not hear? therefore, behold, also his blood is required.

We should understand God always hears the cry of the innocent!

Psa 9:12  When he maketh inquisition for blood, he remembereth them: he forgetteth not the cry of the humble. 

When Reuben rent his clothes it showed his brothers how disappointed he was in them, but Reuben never told his father Jacob the truth for some reason.

What is the truth?

Pro 28:13  He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy. 

This is another law that God will never break.

We will never be able to defy God and get away with it!

No matter what we think about the politics of our nation this tiny Scripture in the Book of Proverbs will hold true.

God will not be mocked for very much longer!

*****Gen 37:30  And he returned unto his brethren, and said, The child is not; and I, whither shall I go? 

Gen 37:31  And they took Joseph's coat, and killed a kid of the goats, and dipped the coat in the blood; 

Gen 37:32  And they sent the coat of many colours, and they brought it to their father; and said, This have we found: know now whether it be thy son's coat or no. 

Reuben asked his brothers how would he ever explain to his father the things about Joseph?

These wicked brothers already had devised a scheme.

They killed one of the goats and dipped that special coat of colors into the blood and sent by a servant to their father.

They were unwilling to face Israel until they knew his reaction!

Their story would be that the coat was found, and they had not seen Joseph.

All those who do such things should know that there will be another special coat dipped in blood one day soon.

Rev 19:11  And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. 

Rev 19:12  His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. 

Rev 19:13  And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. 

Rev 19:14  And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. 

Rev 19:15  And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. 

These ten sons of Jacob did not have the fortitude to witness the outburst of grief from their father. 

They did not want to be there to answer any questions Jacob might have.

These who were willing to kill their own brother but sold him into slavery. became cowards willing to hide their crime and each one had to agree to never let this information come out so their father would know what they had done.

God has another little rule about these things.

Num_32:23  But if ye will not do so, behold, ye have sinned against the LORD: and "be sure your sin will find you out".

All the hidden wickedness and corruption in our own government will eventually be found out. We can be sure of this!

Another thing we might not realize is, there were some wild animals in that day that would attack humans.

*****Gen 37:33  And he knew it, and said, It is my son's coat; an evil beast hath devoured him; Joseph is without doubt rent in pieces. 

Gen 37:34  And Jacob rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his loins, and mourned for his son many days. 

Gen 37:35  And all his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him; but he refused to be comforted; and he said, For I will go down into the grave unto my son mourning. Thus his father wept for him. 

When we think of lions, we think of the African lions that roar on the plains in Africa.  Few people know that there is actually another lion species, the Asiatic Lion, that used to roam Asia as well.

So, there were wild beast in this area in that day and humans were attacked by these animals. It was not too farfetched, for Jacob to believe his son was killed by some wild animal.

It would be 22 years before Jacob would see his son Joseph again, but Jacob did mourn for his son longer than what we would call normal for that day. If there is a precise time of mourning for such a loss.

We should notice that these wicked sons did not actually say that Joseph was dead, but they left their father with very little choice, but to believe Joseph was dead saying they did not find his body which was no doubt rent to pieces.

What do we know is that once Benjamin was born Jacob became ever more protective of him!

We also know that Jacob had deceived his father Isaac.

As parents we also think the worst when something happens to our children. Though Jacob mourned, Joseph was safe in the arms of God stationed to save all his family and preparing to build a nation.

No human could sit down and make such a plan as this plan of God!

*****Gen 37:36  And the Midianites sold him into Egypt unto Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh's, and captain of the guard.

Joseph had some hard lessons to learn at such a young age. We know he was only 17 years of age at this time.

As far as Jacob was concerned, all the things that happened to him after this were against him.

Gen_42:36  And Jacob their father said unto them, Me have ye bereaved of my children: Joseph is not, and Simeon is not, and ye will take Benjamin away: all these things are against me.

In reality, all these things had a purpose because he was living in the plan of God which can never fail!

Now this does not mean that God approved of what happened to Joseph, God already knew what He was going to do.

God never approves of the mistreatment of any human being!

God just takes something bad and makes something good come out of it!

Rom 8:28  And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. 

Our God is so great that He can work out His purpose even when people are doing their worst as we see today.

The plan of God cannot fail nor can it be hindered by any human being or any group of humans.

Amen

 

The Plan of God

The Plan Of God's Servant

"The Course Of This Age"

Book of Mark Chapter 13:1-23

When we last left Jesus, He was inside the Temple complex observing those who were giving to the work of the Lord.

Many of the activities of our Lord the last week of His life centered on the Temple that sat in Jerusalem.

It is a shame that so many in the world seek proof that the Jewish Temple even existed and existed on the Temple Mount that now has the Dome of the Rock, a Muslim Mosque, built where the Temple once stood.

Jesus will foretell of the complete destruction of the Temple of Jerusalem.

The Bible has already foretold of it's still future reconstruction in many places!

Let's begin:

*****Mar 13:1 And as he went out of the temple, one of his disciples saith unto him, Master, see what manner of stones and what buildings are here!

Jesus had withstood the entire religious system of Jerusalem by exposing their true character.

Jesus had wept over the city of Jerusalem.

Jesus would leave the Temple for the last time and He would tell the disciples of it's complete destruction.

No doubt these disciples thought a great deal about the beauty of the Temple that stood in Jerusalem but man's monuments just do not stand the test of time.

The Jewish Temple was first built in 960 BC by King Solomon.

It is important to understand that God created this entire world that we can see and still much more that we cannot see and it is God that makes the rules for all His creation!

God had explained to Adam the result of sin, but Adam had still not obeyed.

In spite of this God still loved humans and had mercy on them.

Before Jesus Christ, and His death, and His resurrection, and His ascension back to the glory world, God provided a way for people to atone for sin.

This was the purpose of the Tabernacle and then the Temple, places to get right with God!

In the times of kings this Temple was plundered by the rulers of many nations and many times it had been repaired.

King Nebuchadnezzar stole all the Temple's gold vessels and took them to Babylon and 11 years after this, he caused that the Temple be destroyed in 586 BC.

It is believed, that it was at this time, that the Ark of the Covenant disappeared and has never been found.

50 years later, the Lord sent Zerubbubel to rebuild the Temple after King Darius of Persia allowed some of the Jews to return to Jerusalem.

This Temple was completed in 516 BC, 70 years after it's destruction just as prophesied.

The people who still lived and that had seen Solomon's Temple wept over Zerubbubel's Temple because it was so modest in comparison to that of Solomon's.

It is this same Temple that King Herod rebuilt between 20BC and AD 64, a period of over 80 years.

This Temple was completely destroyed by the Romans in AD 70 and this is the destruction that Jesus will begin to describe in our passage.

Will the Temple be rebuilt again?

1) Many people believe that the Temple will just remain the hearts of believers but that is not true. The Holy Spirit has a great desire to live in the Temple of our hearts but so many resist Him.

Act 7:51 Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye

2) Many believe that the Temple will be rebuilt, as do I but probably not before the Rapture of the Church.

2Th 2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
2Th 2:4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.

The Temple must be rebuilt before the Anti-Christ can sit in the Holy of Holies, in the Temple of God!

Because Satan cannot enter into any believer!

Jas 4:7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

3) The Lord Jesus said it was He that is the true Temple, as I also believe.

Joh 2:19 Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.
Joh 2:20 Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt thou rear it up in three days?
Joh 2:21 But he spake of the temple of his body.

4) The believer is truly God's Holy Temple!

1Co 3:16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
1Co 3:17 If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

The Temple in Jerusalem was truly a beautiful place but most of man's downfall is because of man's love for doomed things!

1Ti 6:17 Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy;
1Ti 6:18 That they do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate;
1Ti 6:19 Laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life.

*****Mar 13:2 And Jesus answering said unto him, Seest thou these great buildings? there shall not be left one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.

The Jews were extremely proud of the Temple in Jerusalem. By this time of Jesus work on the Temple had been going on for at least 46 years.

Joh 2:20 Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt thou rear it up in three days?

And history tells us that work was not completed until 64 AD.

The Temple was built of white marble with some stones 60 feet in length. and 18 feet high by 16 feet thick.

This wonderful white marble was decorated with gold.

The last Temple, or Herod's Temple was a beautiful work of man-made construction!

From the "court of the Gentiles" the ground level raised 8 feet to the "court of the women".

From the "court of the women" the ground level raised another 10 feet to the "court of Israel".

From the " court of Israel" the ground level raised another 3 feet to the "court of the priests".

From the "court of the priests" the ground level raised another 8 feet to the floor of the Temple itself.

And the Temple was marvelous to gaze upon from the Mount of Olives.

But the disciples of Jesus did not view the Temple as did the Lord Jesus Christ.

Jesus said that the fall of this Temple would be so great that there would not be one stone left upon another!

The Jewish historian Josephus wrote, that Caesar had given orders that that city of Jerusalem and the Temple to be demolished and laid so completely to the ground, that there be not even enough left to make those who would come later believe that it even existed and many still do.

Many have their doubts today that such a Temple existed but recent explorations have proven it did exist.

The Muslim Mosque, the Dome of the Rock is centered on bare projecting rock measuring 60 by 40 feet.

What do we know of this rock?

1Ch 21:18 Then the angel of the LORD commanded Gad to say to David, that David should go up, and set up an altar unto the LORD in the threshingfloor of Ornan the Jebusite.
1Ch 21:19 And David went up at the saying of Gad, which he spake in the name of the LORD.
1Ch 21:20 And Ornan turned back, and saw the angel; and his four sons with him hid themselves. Now Ornan was threshing wheat.
1Ch 21:21 And as David came to Ornan, Ornan looked and saw David, and went out of the threshingfloor, and bowed himself to David with his face to the ground.
1Ch 21:22 Then David said to Ornan, Grant me the place of this threshingfloor, that I may build an altar therein unto the LORD: thou shalt grant it me for the full price: that the plague may be stayed from the people.

This is why this site was chosen by the Muslim!

Their intention was then and is now, to desecrate the things of God!

Allah is not Jehovah, the Tri-Une God!

But the disciples wanted to know the future.

*****Mar 13:3 And as he sat upon the mount of Olives over against the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew asked him privately,
Mar 13:4 Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign when all these things shall be fulfilled?

We may not know which one of these four disciples had glorified the beauty of the Temple, but these 4 wanted to know when the Temple would be destroyed.

Herod's Temple was not considered to be totally completed until 64 AD.

The Jewish religious leaders and the elders of Israel had allowed the defilement of the Temple and Jesus had departed from it and left it desolate.

Jesus Christ will leave every House of God desolate, that does not make that house a house of prayer, to the One True God!

Notice it says in the Book of Revelation, The Lord is on the outside, knocking on the door to get back in!

Rev 3:20 Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.

Why would the Temple be destroyed?

Mat 23:28 Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.

Mat 23:33 Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?

Mat 23:36 Verily I say unto you, "All these things shall come upon this generation".

God would allow the Romans to destroy Jerusalem and the Temple which happened in 70 AD, only 6 years after Herod's Temple was completed.

It is likely that these disciples thought that all these things would take place in their life time and they would also witness the Second Coming of Our Lord but that did not happen.

What Jesus does say is that the generation that sees all His prophesy take place will be the last generation before His Millennial reign.

Now, there is no one that completely understands all prophesy!

BUT, We can be sure that what God has said, will come to pass!

Mat 5:18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.

Mat 24:35 Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.

God gives us all a 4 fold warning!

If we look in the context of the last days we will see these signs of things to avoid:

A) We must avoid being a victim of religious deception.

B) We must avoid being discouraged by persecution.

C) We must avoid being impressed by false signs and wonders.

D) We must avoid the temptation to set dates for the return of the Lord Jesus Christ!

Jesus had already wept over Jerusalem, so how did He respond to this question?

*****Mar 13:5 And Jesus answering them began to say, Take heed lest any man deceive you:
Mar 13:6 For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.

What is deception?

Deception is the misapplication of the truth, in order to mislead.

The world is full of deceivers!

Jesus said the first sign of His Second Coming, would be the fact that many men would proclaim that they are the true Messiah.

There have already been many pretending to come from God with some new revelation since the death of Jesus Christ.

What is the greatest sign of a false Messiah?

Innocent people die!

There is a great difference in life and life eternal and death for the sake of death!

It is amazing how many deceivers have already been seen throughout the ages, with their false salvation programs!

It is also amazing that this world we live in, truly rejects the Lord Jesus Christ but the world will go after such men who claim to be the Messiah and offer so little proof of that claim.

The end of the Church Age will be marked by religious apostasy!

This "apostasy" is the abandonment of the true "Faith" in Jesus Christ.

And, just as many claim to be the Messiah, there will be many who falsely claim to be Christians.

The entire New Testament establishes this fact:

Eph 5:6 Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience.

Col 2:8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.

1Jn 4:1 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.
1Jn 4:2 Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God:
1Jn 4:3 And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.

2Th 2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
2Th 2:4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.

We may not know the exact day nor the exact hour, but we do see "deception" in our world increasing in every way, everyday that we live.

And the Bible still says:

2Ti 3:13 But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived.

People deceiving other people.

Governments deceiving people.

False religions deceiving people.

The rewriting of the scriptures deceiving people.

Even those in the Church falling away because of this deception.

We may not know the exact time, But because we can see all these things, We Do Know It Will Be Soon!

*****Mar 13:7 And when ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars, be ye not troubled: for such things must needs be; but the end shall not be yet.
Mar 13:8 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and there shall be famines and troubles: these are the beginnings of sorrows.

Until I was drafted to serve in the Army in 1970, I did not pay much attention to the world that we live in.

It was good to be an American and it still is. Since that time, I do not remember a year when there was not some war raging somewhere and certainly rumors of war continuously.

These are things that are going to happen until the very end!

But to know the Lord Jesus Christ as the Savior is also to realize that to trust in Him is to place my worries in His hands.

We may ask ourselves why?

God teaches us the simple explanation.

Joh 3:19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.

Psa 82:5 They know not, neither will they understand; they walk on in darkness: all the foundations of the earth are out of course.

What is destroying the foundations of our world?

God asked this:

Psa 82:1 God standeth in the congregation of the mighty; he judgeth among the gods.
Psa 82:2 How long will ye judge unjustly, and accept the persons of the wicked? Selah.

It is the duty of every judge to protect the innocent and the poor, but these things are reversed in the societies of our world.

Corruption at the upper levels of every nation, have not only excused the wicked, but even decided in their favor, and against all that is righteous.

Those in power think only of themselves!

The basic foundations of society can be found in the Book of Genesis.

1.) The Creation of "life" itself, is being destroyed by the lie of Evolution.

2.) The institution of the family, which is the basis of every nation, is being destroyed by immorality, abortion and the gay lifestyle.

3.) The institution of government is being destroyed by ignoring the basic laws of God, the 10 Commandments.

4.) The institution of marriage is being destroyed by the lies of the gay lifestyle and immoral living.

5) Cultures of each separate society is being destroyed by leaning toward a one rule government.

6.) Every institution that had it's beginning in the Book of Genesis, the Book of the Beginnings, is being attacked and systematically destroyed by the evil of this world.

This is why there is such a great attack on the Book of Genesis!

If you destroy the foundations of anything, that structure will collapse!

If you want to destroy any building, you are guaranteed early success if you first destroy the foundation.

God says if you want things to improve then you have only one choice:

Psa 82:4 Deliver the poor and needy: rid them out of the hand of the wicked.

Get the innocent out of the hand of the wicked!

Jesus says this will not happen at the hands of mankind!

Nations will rise up against other nations. These are major wars.

Kingdoms will rise up against kingdoms, these are civil wars.

Because of technology, we hear the fact that earthquakes are happening just about everywhere and seem to be increasing and more devastating.

More people in this world we live in, die of starvation than from any other source.

One eighth of the world's population starves to death yearly, with 7 out of every 8 being children.

Starvation and abortion and divorce, are destroying our children!

There is a war going on behind the scenes, for population control and race domination. This war takes it's greatest toil on children!

Children starving, children dieing because of abortion, and selective fertilization, just to name a few.

One half of our world makes less than 2 dollars per day, yet it could take just the amount of money spent on perfume to feed every starving person in this world for an entire year.

And do not be deceived, there is enough food raised on this earth to feed all the world's population!

Even Judas said that one bottle of perfume could have fed more than 300 people for a day but Judas said this knowing his own greed for riches:

Joh 12:5 Why was not this ointment sold for three hundred pence, and given to the poor?

Starvation is the leading killer of the world's children, and the world's people and why?

The leading cause of poverty, is the control of the world's resources by powerful men who are just simply evil!

They are all like Judas!

Job said these words:

Job 14:1 Man that is born of a woman is of few days, and full of trouble.
Job 14:2 He cometh forth like a flower, and is cut down: "he fleeth also as a shadow", and continueth not

A shadow flees from light until it can find total darkness!

These evil men are the same ones that love darkness more than the light!

The leading cause of wars and rumors of wars and the poor of our world, is because of these evil men seeking to control of the world's resources and having no regard for human beings.

Eph 6:12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

Those "troubles" are disturbances! They could describe, hurricanes, tornadoes, typhoons, and tsunamis but these troubles can also mean sedition or revolt and rebellion against tyranny.

Sedition happens when powerful and evil men control the world's resources.

BUT, the greatest famine in the last of the last days will be a famine from the Word of God!

As we see these things happen, Jesus says, these are just the beginnings of the end!

We can be sure that the disciples were seeing these things as they began the Church and Jesus was also speaking of what is happening in our world today!

Then Jesus gives a warning to all His disciples but especially to the 11 that were with Him this day.

*****Mar 13:9 But take heed to yourselves: for they shall deliver you up to councils; and in the synagogues ye shall be beaten: and ye shall be brought before rulers and kings for my sake, for a testimony against them.

We must be prepared to defend the truth of the Gospel along with ourselves and our families!

This is not to say, we will start our own war, but when God says to put on the Holy Armor, this means we will be in a spiritual war, but a war that can cause our physical death.

Of the 11 disciples that began the early Church only the Apostle John lived to be an old man. The world destroyed the other apostles.

But God's Word cannot be destroyed nor stopped!

Satan hates God's people and He will do everything he can to stop the spread of the "Gospel"!

Satan has already used the Roman Caesars, the Spanish inquisitors, the Holy Roman emperors, Communism, and many evil dictators and along with these, he has infiltrated every government and has also made his way inside the church.

The persecuted church faces it's greatest war in these end times!

We do not see much of it in the news but there are more Christian martyrs today than at any time in the history of the church!

But the "Gospel" must still go forward and it is!

*****Mar 13:10 And the gospel must first be published among all nations.

The great commission given to the Church is to preach the "Gospel of the kingdom" to all nations.

That kingdom is achieved "on this earth" with every saved soul that comes to Jesus!

1Co 3:16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?

Until the Rapture of the Church, God's spiritual kingdom is within each individual believer.

And, Within each individual believer must be that treasury of God's truth, which is the "Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ".

But individual believers can still only be a partial revelations of God's Glory!

In every case it is the Lamb of God, that must sit on the throne in the midst of God's kingdom!

Rev 5:5 And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.
Rev 5:6 And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth.

The Christian Temple must be a place of sacrifice.
The Christian Temple must be a place of worship.
The Christian Temple must be a Holy Place.
The Christian Temple must be dedicated to the Lord Jesus Christ who abides within that Christian Temple.

This is the "Gospel of God's Kingdom" that must be spread throughout all nations, until the end of the Church Age!

This challenge to the Church will remain far from completion and upon the Rapture, the Holy Spirit will begin again to save souls until the second return of Christ Jesus to this earth.

Rev 11:3 And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth.

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.
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 7:9 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.

None of those that reject Jesus Christ in the Church Age will be in this great number that are saved during the Tribulation Period.

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.

But to the Apostles and also to those that are persecuted during the Church Age, Jesus gives us these words:

*****Mar 13:11 But when they shall lead you, and deliver you up, take no thought beforehand what ye shall speak, neither do ye premeditate: but whatsoever shall be given you in that hour, that speak ye: for it is not ye that speak, but the Holy Ghost.
Mar 13:12 Now the brother shall betray the brother to death, and the father the son; and children shall rise up against their parents, and shall cause them to be put to death.
Mar 13:13 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.

There is a time coming and now exist in many nations that the Christian will be persecuted just for teaching and preaching the "Gospel" of the Lord Jesus Christ. For the 12 apostles that time was immediate!

In America there is such a thing as "hate crime legislation" that will most likely allow the Word of God to be treated as a hateful language against the evils of this world.

BUT as Christians, we are to take a stand on the Word of God:

Eph 6:13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, "to stand".

If we have taken that stand, then one day we will be "led" not "forced" before the judge, to defend the Word of God, and very willing do so!

1) 11 of the apostles were martyred because they stood on the Word of God.
2) John the Baptist was martyred because he stood on the Word of God.
3) Only the apostle John is said to have died of old age but their are many things told of John, that would have killed a normal man. God had a special task for John who brought us the Book of Revelation.
4) A Christian of today will not be treated differently!

When this happens, then our defence will be provided by the Holy Spirit who abides in every believer.

Jesus is our example in all things but especially in this:

Act 8:32 The place of the scripture which he read was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like a lamb dumb before his shearer, so opened he not his mouth:
Act 8:33 In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: and who shall declare his generation? for his life is taken from the earth.

Jesus Christ fulfilled this prophesy.

Isa 53:7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.
Isa 53:8 He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.

Our fulfillment is to follow the Lord, when these things happen!

We are all in the hands of God and it may be that God will not allow most of us to be delivered to such men, but we already know that many will be.

Remember these words:

2Ti 1:12 For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.

History has proven that even families take separate sides in most every conflict.

Treachery and betrayal always show up in times of persecution!

But these things will be more prevalent in the time of the Tribulation period.

Rev 6:9 And when he had opened the fifth seal, [I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held]:
Rev 6:10 And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?

No mercy will be shown by the Anti-Christ to anyone who proclaims the Lord Jesus Christ!

BUT, We only get to see "the beginning" of these things as part of the Church!

*****Mar 13:14 But when ye shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing where it ought not, (let him that readeth understand,) then let them that be in Judaea flee to the mountains:
Mar 13:15 And let him that is on the housetop not go down into the house, neither enter therein, to take any thing out of his house:
Mar 13:16 And let him that is in the field not turn back again for to take up his garment.
Mar 13:17 But woe to them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!
Mar 13:18 And pray ye that your flight be not in the winter.
Mar 13:19 For in those days shall be affliction, such as was not from the beginning of the creation which God created unto this time, neither shall be.

Many say that this prophesy was fulfilled at the destruction of the Temple and of Jerusalem in 70 AD and it was, but only in part!

When the Anti-Christ arrives, and he may be actually on the scene now but only in the background, he will eventually become the world's dictator.

It is believed that at this time, he will unveil his secret plans to the world by seizing a newly rebuilt Jewish Temple and putting his own image within the Holy of Holies.

Now the Jews may not know who the true Messiah is, but they sure know who he is not and a war will break out, ending the false peace of the Anti-Christ!

The Anti-Christ will then command for all people to seek the "mark of the beast".

It is those martyrs under the altar that have refused this mark!

2Th 2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
2Th 2:4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.

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.

God says this Anti-Christ is just only part of His creation and not some god:

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.

What is one of the greatest signs that we are in the end times?

May 14, 1948, Israel again became a nation!

But it is during this time of the Anti-Christ, that the Jews will flee again from Jerusalem:

Rev 12:13 And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child.
Rev 12:14 And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.
Rev 12:15 And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood.
Rev 12:16 And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth.
Rev 12:17 And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

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.

*****Mar 13:20 And except that the Lord had shortened those days, no flesh should be saved: but for the elects sake, whom he hath chosen, he hath shortened the days.

In the time of Titus and the destruction of Jerusalem, Titus himself realized that it was Jehovah, the God of the Jews who had allowed him to prevail with such a destruction.

But God had still allowed "a remnant" to escape this destruction!

That word "remnant" in the Bible always means "a holy seed".

What does God say about this remnant?

Mic 2:12 I will surely assemble, O Jacob, all of thee; I will surely gather the remnant of Israel; I will put them together as the sheep of Bozrah, as the flock in the midst of their fold: they shall make great noise by reason of the multitude of men.
Mic 2:13 The breaker is come up before them: they have broken up, and have passed through the gate, and are gone out by it: and their king shall pass before them, and the LORD on the head of them.

In the time of the Church Age there will be only "a remnant" of the world's population that will actually be saved!

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

This does not mean that we should be slack in reaching out to all that are lost because that is still the sin of disobedience!

After these are gathered at the time of the "Rapture", God will then turn His attention back to that "remnant" of the Jew!

Rom 11:25 For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.
Rom 11:26 And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:
Rom 11:27 For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins.
Rom 11:28 As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching the election, they are beloved for the fathers' sakes.

God will always shorten those days of destruction until He has removed "His remnant" because He has chosen these, who have selected Him!

Who are the elect?

Joh 6:37 All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.

But God still give us all another warning!

*****Mar 13:21 And then if any man shall say to you, Lo, here is Christ; or, lo, he is there; believe him not:
Mar 13:22 For false Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall shew signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect.
Mar 13:23 But take ye heed: behold, I have foretold you all things.

The Lord Jesus Christ teaches us that His return will be a literal, and a physical event.

In fact He said He would return the exact same way as the disciples had seen Him leave.

Act 1:9 And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.
Act 1:10 And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel;
Act 1:11 Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.

Jesus also said He would return to get His Church, His Bride.

Joh 14:1 Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.
Joh 14:2 In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.
Joh 14:3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.

These are two separate events.

If we believe these two things, then we cannot be fooled by false messiahs, nor false christians, not false prophets!

We must realize that Satan does have tremendous powers but he is still a deceiver and he teaches lies!

2Co 11:14 And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.

Questions?

Let's Pray!

The Plan Of God's Servant

The Plan Of God's Servant

"Sending Messengers"

Book of Mark Chapter 6

In our last lesson Jesus had calmed the storm on Galilee, showing His power over the elements.

He had showed His power over Satan by removing a Legion of devils from a human being that Satan had used.

Jesus had raised the 12 year old daughter of Jairus back to perfect health after she had died.

This 12 year old was called a Damsel.

A damsel is a young lady not much older than 12.

In our lesson today we will see Jesus show us His intent to send His disciples to spread the "Gospel", but we will also see how Satan can use another young "Damsel", to hinder the work of God!

Many important lessons we will learn as the Holy Ghost guided Mark to write these things down.

Let's begin:

*****Mar 6:1 And he went out from thence, and came into his own country; and his disciples follow him.
Mar 6:2 And when the sabbath day was come, he began to teach in the synagogue: and many hearing him were astonished, saying, From whence hath this man these things? and what wisdom is this which is given unto him, that even such mighty works are wrought by his hands?

It had not been long since Mary, the "virgin" mother of Jesus had brought the "earthly" family of Jesus to Capernaum trying to get Jesus to just come back home and forget what He was doing.

Jesus had been raised in Nazareth but may not have returned there since John the Baptist had been murdered.

Every Jewish man had a right to address the people of the Synagogue and the ruler of the Synagogue would normally ask if any intended to do so.

The Lord Jesus would always speak at this opportunity!

These people knew Jesus and his family very well and they were astonished at His doctrine.

Jesus had began His ministry at the age of 30 and up until that point in His life, He had not been allowed to speak in any Synagogue.

So what did Jesus teach this day?

The Gospel of Luke says this:

Luk 4:17 And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written,
Luk 4:18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
Luk 4:19 To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.
Luk 4:20 And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him.
Luk 4:21 And he began to say unto them, "This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears".

These people were not prepared to hear this message!
His friends were not prepared to hear this message!
His family was not prepared to hear this message!

Jesus taught with words that they had never heard before, but to them, Jesus was just the son of Mary and Joseph, a local boy that had become famous throughout the region.

And they said:

*****Mar 6:3 Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James, and Joses, and of Juda, and Simon? and are not his sisters here with us? And they were offended at him.

Joseph was not the father of Jesus but he had adopted Him as his son and raised Him in his own profession.

A carpenter of that day was an admired profession and a good one had knowledge of many things. We can see that Jesus was recognized as a "carpenter"!

There was a great lack of wood, so carpenters had to also be stone masons and metal workers to build homes.

Wood was mainly used for furniture, so a good carpenter would also be a cabinet maker and other household furniture and a carpenter would have also made farm equipment such as ploughs and yokes.

We can see a good carpenter was a valuable man to have around, but Jesus Christ was much more than a carpenter!

Luke had written some things about the early years of Jesus but here we do see that from those early years until the age of 30 when Jesus began His ministry, He had built a reputation as a carpenter, "a builder", and a craftsman!

Here again Joseph is not mentioned but only the fact that Jesus was birthed by the virgin Mary.

We can also see that Jesus had 4 brothers and also some sisters who were fathered by Joseph.

"And they were offended at Him"

An old prophet had given Mary and Joseph these words when Jesus was just 8 days old:

Luk 2:34 And Simeon blessed them, and said unto Mary his mother, Behold, this child is set for the fall and rising again of many in Israel; and for a sign which shall be spoken against;
Luk 2:35 (Yea, a sword shall pierce through thy own soul also,) that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.

Jesus Christ has always been spoken against in this world, but Christianity will continue until the Lord takes us all home!

And Jesus responded:

*****Mar 6:4 But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, but in his own country, and among his own kin, and in his own house.
Mar 6:5 And he could there do no mighty work, save that he laid his hands upon a few sick folk, and healed them.
Mar 6:6 And he marvelled because of their unbelief. And he went round about the villages, teaching.

Jesus was well known to the people of Nazareth.

Remember Jesus had always kept the Laws of Moses and had always been an upright child.

They had since heard of His great reputation of His teaching and the miracles that He had performed.

Jesus had come to Nazareth in full public display and all they could do was find fault in Him!

They could not believe the truth that stood before them!

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.

They could not believe the things they had heard!

Act 10:38 How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.

To "marvel" is to "wonder"!

To "wonder" is the effect that truth has on ignorance!

In any court of law with all this evidence, there could have only been one conclusion.

Jesus Christ was exactly who He said He was!

Heb 1:3 Who being the brightness of his glory, and "the express image" of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;

Jesus had unfolded a mystery of the Bible to them and He was rejected without any excuse!

Eph 3:9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, "which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ":

God has always spoken to this world we live in, by His Son Jesus!

"Unbelief" in reference to Jesus Christ is refusing to recognize and receive Him as being what He claims to be!

1) Christ Jesus is God manifested in the flesh.
2) Christ Jesus is God's messenger and teacher.
3) Christ Jesus is Our atoning Sacrifice and Great High Priests.
4) Christ Jesus is God's Authority over this world!

This is the sin that will send all such unbelievers to the Burning Lake of Fire!

He who cannot see the Sun (Son) must be stone blind!

So what did Jesus do?

He went around to all the villages and continued to teach!

If Nazareth wanted no part of Salvation, there was still a whole countryside that had not heard His message!

Jesus was preparing His disciples to multiply His message and there is still only "One Message" today!

*****Mar 6:7 And he called unto him the twelve, and began to send them forth by two and two; and gave them power over unclean spirits;
Mar 6:8 And commanded them that they should take nothing for their journey, save a staff only; no scrip, no bread, no money in their purse:
Mar 6:9 But be shod with sandals; and not put on two coats.
Mar 6:10 And he said unto them, In what place soever ye enter into an house, there abide till ye depart from that place.
Mar 6:11 And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear you, when ye depart thence, shake off the dust under your feet for a testimony against them. Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of judgment, than for that city.

Here again the message would be sent to the Jew first and there was a very good reason to go out in pairs:

Ecc 4:9 Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labour.
Ecc 4:10 For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow: but woe to him that is alone when he falleth; for he hath not another to help him up.
Ecc 4:11 Again, if two lie together, then they have heat: but how can one be warm alone?
Ecc 4:12 And if one prevail against him, two shall withstand him; and a threefold cord is not quickly broken.

You see, God will never go against His Own Word!

We can see it was Jesus who matched these pairs together, for only He knew their strengths and weaknesses.

Jesus gave them the power over unclean spirits!

We should always realize that Jesus always gives what is needed before He commands us to go!

Jesus will never send us into the battlefield unprepared!

Stepping out on "faith" when we are called, is God's way!

They were to travel light!

A staff would not only provide support but would also provide a defensive weapon and spiritually a "staff" gives us the picture of the shepherd and the "staff" also is a "type" of the "Bread of Life", the Word of God.

They were to wear their sandals.

The sandals were to protect their feet.

We should have this thought.

God told Moses at the burning bush to remove his shoes (sandals) because he was on Holy Ground.

God told Solomon to keep his feet when he went into the Temple.

Jesus was telling His disciples to wear their sandals because they were stepping out in this evil, and unholy world!

They were not to take anything else because even though Jesus was not with them, they were to trust in Him to provide for them!

These same disciples were not allowed to make preparations when they sailed to the other side on that trip to Gadara. They had to depend on the Lord even in the storm.

And, these disciples were not allowed to make preparations for their journey this day they were sent by the Lord. They still had to depend on the Lord who sent them.

We should realize that Jesus was training these disciples and these are not universal rules for sending missionaries!

These disciples of Jesus had also become well known and many would be waiting to extend hospitality to them.

They should also be prepared to stay with the meager as well as with the more affluent!

All Jews were taught that "the dust of the Gentiles" was impure and was to be shaken off.

Jesus was telling these disciples that any that did not receive them were to be considered impure and they were to shake the dust off their feet and remember they were sent to the Jews.

The Apostle Paul said it this way:

Act 18:5 And when Silas and Timotheus were come from Macedonia, Paul was pressed in the spirit, and testified to the Jews that Jesus was Christ.
Act 18:6 And when they opposed themselves, and blasphemed, he shook his raiment, and said unto them, Your blood be upon your own heads; I am clean: from henceforth I will go unto the Gentiles.

Not everyone in this world will receive the Word of God openly!

The Jewish religious system had already rejected the The Lord as The Messiah and were already plotting to kill Him.

In our day, not everyone is glad to hear the "Gospel" and true preachers are the enemies of most governments of today.

But it is a serious matter to reject the Word of God!

And it is just as serious a matter to reject those that are sent of God!

Pharaoh made this mistake when dealing with Moses!

The city of Sodom made this mistake when dealing with those two angels!

Sodom is mentioned because, immorality that will not change, will be eradicated!

Gomorrah is mentioned to give us the image of eternal fire!

Jud 1:7 Even as Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.

There is indeed a "judgment day coming"!

*****Mar 6:12 And they went out, and preached that men should repent.
Mar 6:13 And they cast out many devils, and anointed with oil many that were sick, and healed them.

What is the order of salvation?

1) Repentance:

The Holy Spirit must be allowed to do His work. It's called Holy Ghost conviction!

Repentance is not just feeling sorry but is a complete change of mind.

Mat 21:28 But what think ye? A certain man had two sons; and he came to the first, and said, Son, go work to day in my vineyard.
Mat 21:29 "He answered and said, I will not: but afterward he repented, and went".

Jesus had said a man must realize he is sick before he will seek out the doctor!

These disciples were sent to do some other things but their first job was to preach the "Gospel of Jesus Christ"!

Rom 10:14 How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?

2) Next comes the results of preaching!

What is in Satan's kingdom?

It is full of devils.
It is full of disease and sickness.
It is full of bondage.

Just so we are clear, the anointing of oil had no healing properties!

That "oil" represents the soothing and gentle effect that salvation brings to the lost.

That "oil" represents the work of the Holy Spirit!

Act 1:8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

1Jn 2:20 But ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things.

Rom 8:2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.
Rom 8:3 For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:

And who do think was keeping up with the things of Jesus?

It was the government!

*****Mar 6:14 And king Herod heard of him; (for his name was spread abroad:) and he said, That John the Baptist was risen from the dead, and therefore mighty works do shew forth themselves in him.
Mar 6:15 Others said, That it is Elias. And others said, That it is a prophet, or as one of the prophets.
Mar 6:16 But when Herod heard thereof, he said, It is John, whom I beheaded: he is risen from the dead.

This is the same Herod Antipas we learned about a few weeks ago. He was the son of Herod the Great. This is the Herod that murdered John the Baptist "for no reason" but to satisfy his illegitimate wife!

Herod did not believe that Christ Jesus was the Messiah!

Herod had a guilty conscience for what he had done to John the Baptist and he had a fear that John had resurrected from the dead and would seek vengeance!

Our conscience and our memory will always make themselves felt in this life we live!

I just heard today that medicine that is sold for stress illness is ten times what it was just two years ago!

Herod had gladly listened to John but he would not obey him!

Herod also knew that miraculous powers were at work in Jesus!

There were also some others that thought of Jesus as the returning Elijah that was prophesied.

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

Others said that Jesus was just another prophet.

Deu 18:15 The LORD thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken;

The world of that day was at least recognizing that Jesus Christ was a great man!

Jesus Christ is surely that Prophet, but they all missed that part about "unto him ye shall hearken".

In our day the Muslim recognize Jesus as only a prophet, but not one to listen too.

This contradicts the title of prophet.

A true Prophet is a spokesman of God!

SO, Why was Herod so worried about Jesus?

*****Mar 6:17 For Herod himself had sent forth and laid hold upon John, and bound him in prison for Herodias' sake, his brother Philip's wife: for he had married her.
Mar 6:18 For John had said unto Herod, It is not lawful for thee to have thy brother's wife.
Mar 6:19 Therefore Herodias had a quarrel against him, and would have killed him; but she could not:
Mar 6:20 For Herod feared John, knowing that he was a just man and an holy, and observed him; and when he heard him, he did many things, and heard him gladly.

Herodias was the unlawful wife of Herod Antipas. God had given the Jews a specific law that governed the wives of brothers:

Lev 18:16 Thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy brother's wife it is thy brother's nakedness.

You see God had said that He would make the rules for the marriage.

God said that the marriage was to be between a man and a woman!

Lev 18:5 Ye shall therefore keep my statutes, and my judgments: which if a man do, he shall live in them: I am the LORD.
Lev 18:6 "None of you shall approach to any that is near of kin to him, to uncover their nakedness": I am the LORD.

Herodias was the granddaughter of Herod the Great. Remember he had had at least 10 wives.

She had been married to Herod Philip of Rome, not to another son Philip the Tetrarch but she had suddenly divorced him under Roman law to marry Herod Antipas, after he had divorced his wife who was the daughter of Aretas the King of Arabia.

It was because of her that John the Baptist was locked up in the prison at Machaerus, known as the Black Fortress.

Herod the Great had built a palace here that overlooked the Dead Sea and this is where Herod Antipas had his birthday party.

Herodias was a wicked woman, much like Jezebel of the Old Testament and she hated John for what he had done and sought every opportunity to have him killed.

But Herod Antipas knew that John was a holy and righteous man and therefore innocent of any wrong doing.

He just preached the truth of God!

When Herod could slip away from Herodias, he would gladly hear the Word that John spoke to him while he was in that prison.

But Herodias had an evil plan to finally be rid of John for good.

Watch as the plan of this evil woman unfolds.

*****Mar 6:21 And when a convenient day was come, that Herod on his birthday made a supper to his lords, high captains, and chief estates of Galilee;
Mar 6:22 And when the daughter of the said Herodias came in, and danced, and pleased Herod and them that sat with him, the king said unto the damsel, Ask of me whatsoever thou wilt, and I will give it thee.
Mar 6:23 And he sware unto her, Whatsoever thou shalt ask of me, I will give it thee, unto the half of my kingdom.

She chose the birthday celebration of Herod to spring her trap!

Mat 14:6 But when Herod's birthday was kept, the daughter of Herodias danced before them, and pleased Herod.

In our last lesson Jesus raised a "damsel" from her death and we saw that she was 12 years old.

A "damsel" was a half grown young lady from 12 to 13 years old.

Many marriages took place by the age of 14 during this time.

This daughter was named Salome and she would have been introduced as a princess but it was a shameful exhibition of lewd, half naked, dancing arranged by her mother who knew how to excite her husband!

Herod was excited enough to make an unreal offer.

A wise man once wrote these words:

Pro 6:2 Thou art snared with the words of thy mouth, thou art taken with the words of thy mouth.

Pro 18:7 A fool's mouth is his destruction, and his lips are the snare of his soul.

Being in a drunken stupor was no excuse for Herod's actions and the preaching of Jesus had brought back memories of this day and was haunting this Herod now.

Herodias's plan had been perfect:

*****Mar 6:24 And she went forth, and said unto her mother, What shall I ask? And she said, The head of John the Baptist.
Mar 6:25 And she came in straightway with haste unto the king, and asked, saying, I will that thou give me by and by in a charger the head of John the Baptist.
Mar 6:26 And the king was exceeding sorry; yet for his oath's sake, and for their sakes which sat with him, he would not reject her.
Mar 6:27 And immediately the king sent an executioner, and commanded his head to be brought: and he went and beheaded him in the prison,
Mar 6:28 And brought his head in a charger, and gave it to the damsel: and the damsel gave it to her mother.

This young damsel went to her mother to see what would be important enough to ask of Herod but she was used by her mother to get what her mother had wanted all along, the death of John the Baptist.

You see Herodias knew that Herod would not easily break an oath but she knew most of all that Herod would never intentionally look bad before his invited guest.

It was they who had been invited to impress Herod on this special birthday!

We are to stand against the devil but we are to flee from sin:

1Ti 6:11 But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.

We should be aware of the companions we surround ourselves with, and learn to say "NO" to any evil way!

Herod felt sorrow for what he was about to do, but he would not reject this child he had made this promise to!

In an brief instant John the Baptist was dead and Herod was damned!

This is the reason that Herod Antipas desired to see Jesus:

Luk 9:9 And Herod said, John have I beheaded: but who is this, of whom I hear such things? And he desired to see him.

He still had this desire even when Jesus was on trial:

Luk 23:8 And when Herod saw Jesus, he was exceeding glad: for he was desirous to see him of a long season, because he had heard many things of him; and he hoped to have seen some miracle done by him.
Luk 23:9 Then he questioned with him in many words; but he answered him nothing.

But we see Jesus had no desire to offer redemption to this Herod!

The Head of John the Baptist was delivered to Herodias:

*****Mar 6:29 And when his disciples heard of it, they came and took up his corpse, and laid it in a tomb.

It was a sad time for the disciples of John and after burying him to stop any further mutilation of his body, they went to Jesus.

What else could they do?

Mat 14:12 And his disciples came, and took up the body, and buried it, and went and told Jesus.

*****Mar 6:30 And the apostles gathered themselves together unto Jesus, and told him all things, both what they had done, and what they had taught.
Mar 6:31 And he said unto them, Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest a while: for there were many coming and going, and they had no leisure so much as to eat.

It is a fact that the human body needs rest!

Satan had been allowed a small triumph over John the Baptist, but he would never have a victory over The Lord Jesus.

Now we will begin to see just how large these multitudes were that followed Our Lord.

God works in His own time!

God is never in a hurry as we saw in our last lesson when He raised that 12 year old child.

In fact God is on time every time and He does not expect His children to be on the run continuously!

That word "Come" is used more than 3000 times in the KJV Bible.

It is one of the first words Jesus used when He began His ministry with the disciples:

Joh 1:39 He saith unto them, Come and see. They came and saw where he dwelt, and abode with him that day: for it was about the tenth hour.

"Come" will be one of the last words we will hear Him speak before our life in the glory world:

Rev 22:17 And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.

Because this is God's message to whosoever will listen to His words:

Mat 11:28 "Come" unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

There can be no peaceful rest without the Lord Jesus!

The 12 had just returned from their first mission trip.

Many of them had known John the Baptist and no doubt the word that he had been executed for preaching the truth, just as they were now, could have been upsetting to them.

They had lost a godly friend.

The Apostle Peter did not forget these days and offers this encouragement:

1Pe 1:7 That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:
1Pe 1:8 Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory:
1Pe 1:9 Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.

Jesus said let's go to a "desert place".

This was not a sandy desert but a place that was thinly populated and away from crowds and cities.

No doubt these same thoughts had come to David:

Psa 23:1 A Psalm of David. The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
Psa 23:2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
Psa 23:3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
Psa 23:4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
Psa 23:5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
Psa 23:6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.

But this time of desperate people, looking for relief of their circumstances would not allow this to happen.

*****Mar 6:32 And they departed into a desert place by ship privately.
Mar 6:33 And the people saw them departing, and many knew him, and ran afoot thither out of all cities, and outwent them, and came together unto him.

It is easy to see the human side of Jesus here. It was time for a holiday!

Remember God is a great believer in taking a holiday to rest:

Gen 2:1 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.
Gen 2:2 And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.

We already know that any ship on the Sea of Galilee could be seen from any shoreline.

As these desperate people followed after Jesus on foot, a great crowd gathered as they proceeded through each village and city.

*****Mar 6:34 And Jesus, when he came out, saw much people, and was moved with compassion toward them, because they were as sheep not having a shepherd: and he began to teach them many things.

Compassion is best described as a suffering with another and as painful sympathy for another human being.

Compassion is a mixture of passion, sorrow, and much love.

But Our Lord and Our God is full of "compassion"!

Psa 78:38 But he, being full of compassion, forgave their iniquity, and destroyed them not: yea, many a time turned he his anger away, and did not stir up all his wrath.
Psa 78:39 For he remembered that they were but flesh; a wind that passeth away, and cometh not again.

They were like sheep that had no shepherd!

They had great needs:

Luk 9:11 And the people, when they knew it, followed him: and he received them, and spake unto them of the kingdom of God, and healed them that had need of healing.

What did Jesus do?

1) He received them.
2) He taught them the truth.
3) He healed them.

But there was much more.

4) He would also feed them with "Bread From Heaven"!

*****Mar 6:35 And when the day was now far spent, his disciples came unto him, and said, This is a desert place, and now the time is far passed:
Mar 6:36 Send them away, that they may go into the country round about, and into the villages, and buy themselves bread: for they have nothing to eat.
Mar 6:37 He answered and said unto them, Give ye them to eat. And they say unto him, Shall we go and buy two hundred pennyworth of bread, and give them to eat?

The 12 chosen of Jesus had not had much of a holiday and the day was now gone.

Jesus had specifically chose this desert place and He will feed His sheep.

We have already said that Our Lord never changes in His ways, so great lessons can be learned from all His miracles.

This was a great crowd of not only men but also women and children and they all wanted to hear what Jesus had to say.

There were no religious leaders here this day, just people with needs.

What did they all have in common?

They were all hungry and they were all poor!

So what would Jesus do?

Jesus gave the invitation!

Jesus provided the meal!

All this great multitude had to do was to "receive what the Lord provides"!

A free gift by the "Grace of God".

A great lesson for the 12 chosen of the Lord to learn and for us all!

They would not be sent away!

God's disciples can only lead the lost to the Lord it is by God's "Grace" that His gifts are offered!

Eph 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

Philip, one of the 12 told of their little power:

Joh 6:7 Philip answered him, Two hundred pennyworth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may take a little.

Philip knew that they might could feed this multitude but they could not satisfy their hunger, for Jesus could only do that!

And Jesus will not allow His sheep to starve!

*****Mar 6:38 He saith unto them, How many loaves have ye? go and see. And when they knew, they say, Five, and two fishes.

They had the total supply of one lad, whose mother had cared enough to pack him a lunch!

The demand was great.

The supply was little.

But, the Lord Jesus is not caught up in the law of supply and demand!

Jesus said just do as I say.

*****Mar 6:39 And he commanded them to make all sit down by companies upon the green grass.

Psa 23:2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.

They were to sit down as they would at a table that was full of food.

They were about to dine at God's table!

*****Mar 6:40 And they sat down in ranks, by hundreds, and by fifties.

1Co 14:33 For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.

They were told to sit down as they would in an orderly fashion at their own table.

Out of disorder Jesus Christ brings order.

What was the miracle?

*****Mar 6:41 And when he had taken the five loaves and the two fishes, he looked up to heaven, and blessed, and brake the loaves, and gave them to his disciples to set before them; and the two fishes divided he among them all.
Mar 6:42 And they did all eat, and were filled.
Mar 6:43 And they took up twelve baskets full of the fragments, and of the fishes.

This miracle is recorded in all 4 of the "Gospels".

Before Jesus started, He looked up to Heaven.

This world we live in cannot supply our greatest need!

Before Jesus brakes the bread He blesses it.

The food we receive from the Lord is already blessed, so God who gives it, then deserves our thanks.

Man cannot bless the things of God!

They did all eat!

They were all filled!

There were many of them that had not realized that a miracle taken place but the chosen 12 became very aware when they gathered 12 baskets full of fragments!

We can see that the baskets that the 12 carried their own provisions were now filled.

Psa 78:72 So he fed them according to the integrity of his heart; and guided them by the skilfulness of his hands.

The Lord Jesus will always have more than enough for those that call on His name!

*****Mar 6:44 And they that did eat of the loaves were about five thousand men.

Matthew adds:

Mat 14:21 And they that had eaten were about five thousand men, beside women and children.

We see when the word multitude is written it can well mean more than 10,000 people.

It is very obvious that the world of that day was taking a great notice of Jesus of Nazareth!

*****Mar 6:45 And straightway he constrained his disciples to get into the ship, and to go to the other side before unto Bethsaida, while he sent away the people.
Mar 6:46 And when he had sent them away, he departed into a mountain to pray.

Jesus did not force His disciples to sail without Him, He just convinced them that is was the necessary thing to do.

The disciples did not want to leave Jesus behind because there were no more boats left for Him to come later.

They still did not understand the power of God, that was Jesus Christ.

Bethsaida was the native home of Peter, Andrew, and Philip. and Jesus would soon meet a blind man here.

Joh 6:22 The day following, when the people which stood on the other side of the sea saw that there was none other boat there, save that one whereinto his disciples were entered, and that Jesus went not with his disciples into the boat, but that his disciples were gone away alone;

With these things settled Jesus went up alone on the mountain to pray!

Jesus was finally alone with Our Father who is in Heaven!

We can see that Jesus felt it was important to spend some quiet time with His Father!

This is also something that we must all do!

We should also see this as a "type" of the church without the Holy Spirit.

The 12 disciples were launched in the sea of this world without the power of Christ Jesus.

****Mar 6:47 And when even was come, the ship was in the midst of the sea, and he alone on the land.

Remember what Jesus said to them later:

Act 1:7 And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power.
Act 1:8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

But we can also get a picture of the modern day Church tossing in the storms and waves of the Laodicean Church Age patiently waiting on the return of Jesus Christ to get His Church.

1Co 15:57 But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
1Co 15:58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.

*****Mar 6:48 And he saw them toiling in rowing; for the wind was contrary unto them: and about the fourth watch of the night he cometh unto them, walking upon the sea, and would have passed by them.

Jesus watches over all His disciples as we travel through the storms of life!

That word "toiling" meant that it was like "torture" to row against that contrary wind!

That wind was blowing in the opposite direction from which they were headed.

We know this world we live in is going in the opposite direction from the Word of God!

The fourth watch of the night would have been between 3 AM and 6 AM.

We know that our world is dark and getting darker but we are to continue to do the work the Lord has given us to do!

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.

And there are other reasons to continue:

1Co 1:7 So that ye come behind in no gift; waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ:
1Co 1:8 Who shall also confirm you unto the end, that ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Jesus Christ was not going to pass by His disciples, they only thought this!

It may not always appear that the Lord is with us in our time of need but He is keeping a close watch on each and every one of us!

Heb 13:5 Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.
Heb 13:6 So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.

Jesus would not say this if it were not true!

*****Mar 6:49 But when they saw him walking upon the sea, they supposed it had been a spirit, and cried out:
Mar 6:50 For they all saw him, and were troubled. And immediately he talked with them, and saith unto them, Be of good cheer: it is I; be not afraid.
Mar 6:51 And he went up unto them into the ship; and the wind ceased: and they were sore amazed in themselves beyond measure, and wondered.

Not only were these experienced fishermen in fear of the storm, they believed they were seeing things and they thought they were seeing a ghost.

After all, they believed that no mortal man can walk on water!

And they also remembered those pigs filled with evil spirits had drowned near this same water not to long ago.

So they cried out to God and as God does, He hears our cries!

" It is I"***** Exo 3:14 And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.
Exo 3:15 And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.

It is Jehovah that answered:

Rev 1:8 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.

It is the Lord that answered "be not afraid"!

And the Lord climbed into the ship and the wind ceased!

We know that Mark was led to the Lord by Peter and after his dispute with the Apostle Paul, Mark spent a great deal of time with Peter.

So maybe Peter did not want Mark to write down how he had himself walked on the water also but had let his faith falter and began to sink:

Mat 14:27 But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.
Mat 14:28 And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water.
Mat 14:29 And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.
Mat 14:30 But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.
Mat 14:31 And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?

Again the Lord showed His power over the forces of nature.

But why was their faith weak?

*****Mar 6:52 For they considered not the miracle of the loaves: for their heart was hardened.

Just as the world is today, we just do not consider the full power of the Lord Jesus Christ.

When each miracle is only looked at on it's merits we sometimes miss the big picture.

When Jesus fed that crowd of much more than 5000, they had not understood the full breadth of that power.

They should not have been astonished, that the sea again calmed and that wind ceased.

Today we can say that those that live in the so called Bible Belt are "Gospel Hardened".

When we should know what to expect from the Lord, we allow doubts to interfere with good judgment.

The Lord has said what He will do!

We cannot have our joy in this world until we accept the full truth of the "Gospel" of the Lord Jesus Christ.

After all it is His "Gospel"-------AND, It is Good News not bad news!

1Th 2:19 For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at his coming?

*****Mar 6:53 And when they had passed over, they came into the land of Gennesaret, and drew to the shore.
Mar 6:54 And when they were come out of the ship, straightway they knew him,
Mar 6:55 And ran through that whole region round about, and began to carry about in beds those that were sick, where they heard he was.

The land of Gennesaret has been called "the Paradise of Galilee".

Gennesaret means the "garden of the prince".

But this day would be a day when good things would happen.

It was a day to meet Jesus!

*****Mar 6:56 And whithersoever he entered, into villages, or cities, or country, they laid the sick in the streets, and besought him that they might touch if it were but the border of his garment: and as many as touched him were made whole.

Many of the miracles that Jesus had done were soon forgotten but not His power to heal!

But Jesus was not seeking fame!

Jesus had come for a different reason:

Joh 10:9 I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.
Joh 10:10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
Joh 10:11 I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.

Questions?

Let's Pray!