This is the second message in a series of 10 studies on the Brides who are revealed in the Book of Revelation.
Whose bride are you?
This is the first of ten messages on the two Brides revealed in the Book of Revelation. The study is based on the Lost in Translation series by John Klein and Adam Spears.
Tabernacles 2015: a kairos time to visit Israel
If you are a believer whose faith stands on the steadfastness of the Word of God, explore this: Tabernacles is a Biblical and historical feast with a profound prophetic purpose. The Feast plays a major part in the outworking of God’s End-Time purposes and so carries considerable ramifications for the Church.
Consider its timing – and specifically the international Christian observance of the Feast in Jerusalem since 1979. Israel’s God is mightily at work in the midst of the earth today. As they so often do, His acts defy complete comprehension. Yet it is clear He wants us to be aware and to participate in what He is doing.
Foretold repeatedly through the prophets of old is God’s intention to gather His dispersed Chosen People from the four corners of the globe and bring them back into their own land. We are living in the middle of the realization of this pledge. To the mortification of the God-rejecting nations, the Jews are being brought back to – and planted in – the land determined by Divine decree to be exclusively theirs.
According to the Bible, hard on the heels of their phenomenal physical reconstitution will come her spiritual rebirth. And it will change the world. God has determined to pour out upon this nation – but only once they are back in the land – the spirit of grace and supplication that will result in the circumcision of their hearts. And so all Israel will be brought into the New Covenant relationship with the Almighty promised in Jeremiah 31:31. Then – and only then – will God set up the Messianic Kingdom on earth.
As His plan unfolds precisely according to the age-old blueprint, Islamic nations, communist nations, secular humanist nations and once Judeo-Christian nations – OUR nations – are rallying against it. The international community has long been working to reverse the physical restoration of the Jews to the biblical heartland of Israel by conjuring up in that very place an Arab state called Palestine. Thereby (whether they believe it or not and realize it or not), the nations are out to forestall and, were it possible, thwart the glorious purposes of God.
When – as Christians from these increasingly hostile and determined nations – we come to Israel to celebrate the Feast, we come to worship the Lord, to proclaim His promises to the people and land of Israel and in faith, with conviction, to do exploits that spiritually support the restoration of Israel.
If you don’t get it, if this strikes you as error – then go, I urge you, into your prayer closet with the One you call Lord. Ask your heavenly Father to reveal His truth on this vital matter. And ask how He would have you respond.
You do NOT want to miss out on something as vital and as exhilarating as coming on tour with us in September – October; visit ww.cmj.org.au for the details
The writing is on the wall…
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Did you know that the next Feast of Sukkot (Tabernacles) will be ushered in by a ‘blood moon’ (total lunar eclipse) on September 27th? Not just any blood moon but a super blood moon. This occurs when the moon is at perigee – closer to the earth than at any other time of the year. Given that it will be centred over Israel, it will appear 14% larger than a regular full moon there. There has never been a super blood moon on the Sukkot following a shemitah (Sabbath) year before.
The Bible sets shemitah years to occur every seven years as an economic reset year; debt is eliminated and slaves go free. To give the land a chance to rest. The current shemitah started in October 2014 and goes until 13 September 2015. The last 2 shemitah years – 2001 and 2008 – have seen highly significant financial crises.
The Jewish Talmud (book of interpretation) says: “When the moon is in eclipse, it is a bad omen for Israel. If its face is as red as blood, (it is a sign that) the sword is coming to the world.” In other words, it is a portent of judgement or war in their view.
In Genesis 1:14, we read that God created the sun, moon and the stars not only to give us day and night but also as prophetic signs. During the period from April 2014 to September 2015, there will have been a ‘tetrad’ (four) of these blood moons, each one of them falling on the full moon festivals of Passover or Tabernacles. As stated, however, only the last one will be visible from the Land of Israel. (Heavenly signs are not considered by the prophets to be significant unless they are).
The above photograph gives you some idea of what will be seen (weather permitting) from Jerusalem on the evening of September 27th. As you can see, it is going to be an amazing spectacle. More than this, however, if the prophets (both Jewish and Christian) are right in their understanding of the times, then has the time come for you to throw caution to the winds, seize the day and make the trip which has been on your bucket list all these years. Can you afford to put it off any longer? Visit <cmj.org.au> for information re this window of opportunity.
The Church of the Firstborn…
First born sons belong to God in a special way. In Numbers 3, we read how Hebrew parents had to pay redemption money to the priest of the temple to ‘redeem’ their son to be their own son.
Consider what this meant for the people of Egypt when the judgment of God fell on Pharoah (Exodus 10:1 – 13:6). By way of contrast, consider what it will mean for the church of the firstborn (Hebrews 12:23) when His judgment falls on Pharoah’s counterpart in the days that lie ahead.
Wouldn’t you rather be judged / disciplined / redeemed by God than condemned along with the world? Selah!
FROM PENTECOST TO TABERNACLES IN JERUSALEM
Have the Times of the Gentiles been fulfilled? When the Church was born – at Pentecost – it was commissioned to be the witnesses of the Jewish Messiah in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria to the ends of the earth ie Australia and New Zealand. Now that the Jewish people are back in the Land of Israel, the way is open for a remnant of them to be gathered together with a remnant of Gentile people under the sovereignty of God. Could it be that this “root of Jesse” is a banner for the peoples of the world today; proclaiming God’s faithfulness to His promise that, when the fullness of the Gentiles has come in, “all Israel will be saved” (Romans 11:25).
On the other hand, the Temple Mount is still being trampled on by other people groups. The holiest site for Judaism is still dominated by the third holiest site of Islam!
Given the above – whilst we cannot say for certain that this condition of the Lord’s second coming has been met – the hope of God’s people that “all Israel will be saved” (Romans 11:25) is sure and certain. At the end of the day, the natural branches will be grafted into their own olive tree – in fulfillment of Tabernacles. The Jewish people who look to the Torah for their salvation will realise that Yeshua is the living Torah. If the Lord could not be trusted to deliver on this promise, how could He be trusted for those of us who were grafted into the true tree? See <www.cmj.org.au> to find out how you can be with Jesus at Sukkot next year…
Next Year in Jerusalem!
The only time this sight will be seen in Israel will be on September 28, 2015 – the Feast of Tabernacles. This will give the buzz normally felt in Jerusalem at this season an extra boost! If this is on your bucket list, there could be no better time or place at which to be ‘With Jesus at Sukkot’. Visit <cmj.org.au > for the details…
Ten Days of Testing ahead
Don’t be deceived by the sweetness of Rosh Hashanah; it ushers in 10 days of spiritual testing. The blast of shofar associated with this appointed time calls us to a period of self-examination known as the Days of Awe n preparation for the holiest day of the Hebrew year – Yom Kippur. “Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.”(Heb.12:11) This is how it is with the high & holy days of the Lord. We look beyond the 30 days +10 to the joy of Sukkot – especially Simchat Torah!
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Next Year in Jerusalem
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Our gateway to a reconciled community within the walls of an Old City contested by the three major religions.
The one & only pathway to peace in this world
http://www.messianictimes.com/daily-news/israeli-news/2015-iranian-pastor-plans-to-embrace-jews-in-israel