The Desolation of Jerusalem and its Temple (Mat 24:15)

The Desolation of Jerusalem and its Temple (Mat 24:15)

To understand eschatology, one very important event is the desolation / destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem and the city itself. 

This event was foretold by Jesus several times, and prophesied to the disciples and the Jews at that time, that it will soon take place.

This term "Desolation of the Temple" coincides with the destruction of Jerusalem by the Roman general Titus as ordered by Emperor Nero.


It occurs in 3 occasions in book of Daniel.

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

Dan 11:31  And arms shall stand on his part, and they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that maketh desolate. 

Dan 12:11  And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days. 


In Matthew Jesus quoted Daniel directly, and refer this to the destruction of Jerusalem.

Mat 24:15  When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place,  
Mat 24:16  Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains.

Again in Mark, it says the same:

Mar 13:14  But when ye shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing where it ought not, then let them that be in Judaea flee to the mountains.


In Luke's version of Jesus' warning, the abomination is not mentioned, and the sign that it is time to flee Jerusalem is explicitly said to be that Jerusalem would be surrounded by armies.

Luk 21:20  And when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh. 

Luk 21:21  Then let them which are in Judaea flee to the mountains; and let them which are in the midst of it depart out; and let not them that are in the countries enter thereinto.

You can read more of this at:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abomination_of_desolation


Coming back to Mt 23, we can see that Jesus was directing all His disgust and warnings at the Pharisees, and the religious Jews of His time, when He began to call out Woe, after Woe, after Woe at them.

In Mt 23:34-35, Jesus blamed them for killing all the righteous servants that God had sent to warn them to turn from their wicked ways.

Mt 23:36 ... And ALL THIS will come to THIS generation. 

ALL WHAT? All the judgement of God is going to fall on that generation.


WHY.? WHY is there a Desolation of Jerusalem and its Temple?

Because they have killed and crucify those that God has sent to them. Even including Jesus, they were about to crucify.

WHY? Because they have corrupted the laws of Moses and have misrepresented it. They have broken the Old Covenant also called the Mosaic Covenant. Israel was in such a terrible backslidden state, that God had to send Jesus to annul the Old Covenant and usher in a New Covenant.


It is WRONG to interpret our present day persecution, calamities and pandemics as judgements from God - by quoting Mt 23:36. Yes, there were wars, and holocausts, and genocides and disasters. But NO.. the Judgement of God was on THAT generation, not ours.


Also, Jesus talked about that Jewish generation and not the present Jewish generation in general.

The heart cry of Jesus is about Jerusalem:

Mt 23:37-38. It's all about Jerusalem. V38: the house of Jerusalem is the Temple of Jerusalem. (See Luke 19:46 - my house is a house of prayer...). Solomon built the temple of God and called it the house of God, because  the temple was special. It was the dwelling presence of God.


Interesting to see in Mt 23:38, Jesus said that their house is going to be desolate. The temple is usually called God's house, but now Jesus does not even recognize it as God's house, but as their house.


Today, Christians in the world calls their church buildings "house of God". It is a mistake because we are the "house of God". We are the temple of God (1 Cor 6:19). We are the dwelling place of God, not a building for gathering people.


In John 14: Jesus compared you as the house of God, and He has come  to dwell in you. V20: God's house is in you. God's house will never be desolate, but their house will be desolate. Their house belongs to them. God's house belongs to God. Their house is going to be destroyed, but God is happy to dwell in us, His new house.


God  is not going to rebuild the temple. There is a worldwide movement that is advocating for the rebuilding of the Temple in Jerusalem and called it the Third Temple. (I will deal with the number of Temples in another writing).


God is not happy to rebuild another Temple in Jerusalem. God does not move from physical temple, to man's heart the spiritual temple, and then move back to another physical temple.


If God does that, then all that He had done through Jesus Christ is in vain.


God already has a temple, and that temple is the hearts of man/woman.
Any other temples is a desolation and void of God's presence and power.


Luke 19:41-44 Jesus tells them exactly WHAT is to come to Jerusalem. He said exactly HOW Jerusalem is going to fall, and that those who listen should flee away. (similar account in Mt 24).


You can read more about the Siege of Jerusalem here:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Jerusalem_(70_CE)
It deals with HOW Jerusalem and the Temple is going to be destroyed and laid desolate.

Or if you prefer to watch, here are some historical video links:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KE4hmrvZLIQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hen0wmoj5RU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y741QbT1YEo

RC Sproul was one brilliant bible scholar:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rUKtA0HLPrI&t=789s

Updated: 24 May 2021

Understanding the Parable of the Wicked Tenants (Part 2) (Matthew 21:33-46)

Understanding the Parable of the Wicked Tenants (Matthew 21:33-46)

In Part 1, we see that Jesus is the Stone ejected by the builders.
Jesus is the son killed by the tenants.

And the Father is going to kill the tenants.

This is actually a prediction / prophecy by Jesus  concerning the events that are about to take place.

Subsequently we see that Jesus was rejected  totally by the Jews.
Jesus was killed and crucified by the Jews.

At the Cross, Jesus cried out "It is Finished"

My question: What was finished?

- The death of Jesus was finished.
- The Adam race was finished.
- Sin's dominion over mankind is finished.
- The war against the enemy is finished.
- God's obligation under the Old Covenant is finished.

(Side note: The Old Covenant system resembles many other religions of the world. If you do something for God then only God will bless you. It's like you scratched His back, He will scratch your back. You need to do something to earn the favor of God. That is the Old religious system).


Very Important: However, there was ONE thing that Jesus did NOT Finish..?

Answer: Jesus did not finish the Days of Vengeance. The Father has not killed the "wicked tenants" yet. You read in Mt 21, that the vinedresser is very angry, and he is going to destroy them.


The Days of Vengeance is fulfilled only in Luke 21:22 and Mt 24.

Mat 21:43  Therefore say I unto you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof.


God is going to destroy the Temple, take away the kingdom of God from them and give it to another.

This was actually prophesied by Isaiah in Isa 65:15, where it says Israel is going to slay the chosen of God, and God will give His kingdom to another.


Question: Who is God going to give it to.?

God is going to give it to you and me.

According to 1 Pet 2:9-10, those who accept the Son, have become the chosen, God's people.

Israel is no longer God's special people.
(Stop praying for Israel and Jerusalem to earn the blessing of God. That was in the Old Covenant).

Those who receive the Son = they are God's special people.

We are now God's holy people; we have been transferred from our old kingdom into God's kingdom.


Jesus said it is going to happen.

And this is the Time Sequence of how it is going to happen:

a. The End of the Old Covenant / system.

b. Vengeance of God against that old system because of the rejection of His Son.

and

c. God's kingdom given to others who accept the Son.

Conclusion: THAT is how we should understand the Parable of  the wicked tenants.

Understanding the Parable of the Wicked Tenants (Part 1) (Matthew 21:33-46)

Understanding the Parable of the Wicked Tenants (Matthew 21:33-46)


This passage is found in Matthew 21:33-46.

Some people actually called it the Parable of the Vine dresser because it concerns a Landlord who owns a vineyard to produce wine.

In a gist, the story goes like this:

The Landowner has planted a vineyard so that he can produce wine from the wine press.

He then lease it the tenants and went away. When it was harvest time, he send his servants to collect his share of the harvest. One after another, all his servants were harmed or killed by the tenants who refuse to give the produce. The Landowner then send his son. The tenants  killed his son also so that they can keep the vineyard for themselves.
What will the  Landowner do? He will kill all the tenants, and lease the vineyard to others who can give him the produce.


To understand Mt 21, you need to know that it is part of Mt 21, 22, 23, 24. It is about the last week of Jesus in Jerusalem (according to my Harper Study Bible).

The  golden rule in bible understanding: Context is very important.

Mt 24 deals with the destruction of Jerusalem and its temple within THAT generation. It has nothing to do with us in the 21st Century or the future. And Mt 21 is the starting of the beginning of how God is going to destroy the temple. The destruction of Jerusalem is also called the End of the Age. The Last Days. The End Times (see my other writings).

So Mt 21 is the beginning of the End Times. It begins with the marching of Jesus on a donkey into the city of Jerusalem.

Some people called it the Olivet Discourse, because  it begins from Mt 21:1 at the Mount of Olives.

Mark 11: gives a similar sequence of time of Mt 21.

Mk 11:1 Triumphant entry into Jerusalem.

Mk 11:12 Jesus curses the fig tree (some say the fig tree represents Israel).

Mk 11:15 Jesus cleanses the temple at Jerusalem.

Mk 11:20 The fig tree withered and died.

Mt 21 and Mk 11 is ALL about Israel, Jerusalem and the Temple. It is not about you and me. It talks about the Inefficiency of the Old Covenant (the old system in the Temple). Besides this parable, Jesus spoke of other parables that is about the same thing = the inefficiency of the Temple and Old Covenant.

In Mt 21:28-32 In the Parable of the 2 sons, it is also about the Inefficiency of Jerusalem and its Temple. It is another illustrated parable on the inefficiency of the Old Covenant system. The 1st son were the Jews who did not do the will of the Father.

Subsequently, the other parables within Mt 21 - 24 all deals with the same thing. The inefficiency of the Old Covenant or the Temple system.

It seems like Jesus is using these parables again and again and again, so that He can at least try to reach out to some of these hard headed and hard hearted Jews. Mind you, the Pharisees (religious Jews) and scribes (educated Jews) and priests (religious leaders) KNEW that Jesus was talking about them and nobody else.

Mat 21:45  When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard these stories, they knew that Jesus was talking about them.

Somehow, along the way, the modern day 21st Century believer thought Mt 21 - 24 is about them. Wrong bible interpretation..!!

Coming back to the Parable of the tenants, Mt 21:33-46,  the STONE that the builders reject becomes the Cornerstone.

The Stone is Jesus. The Son killed by the tenants is Jesus.

Important: Jesus is predicting: They are going to kill Him.

AND the Father is going to do something about these tenants.


This is the LEAD Story leading to Mt 24 = which is the Days of Vengeance..!!

The Father is going to Finish them off..!!

The Father is going to take Vengeance against the Pharisees and priesthood, those who killed Jesus.

In Luke 21, we have the same scenario, the Days of Vengeance is for the Jewish people who killed Jesus.

TO BE CONTINUED.. (PART 2)

Is the New Covenant for Israel Only..?

I was asked a question:

Q: Is the New Covenant only for Israel, or Israel Only (IO)? Isn't Israel the covenantal people of God? Isn't the New Covenant only for those redeemed from the Old Covenant? Isn't the heavenly kingdom nothing to do with people besides the covenant people?

Steven: At that time of the New Covenant, Jesus ushered it in, was to replace the Old Covenant. That happened when the temple and all its paraphernalia were destroyed COMPLETELY.

(side note: I wonder why people today wants to build a 3rd temple in Jerusalem. God destroyed the physical temple, so that He can live in us as a spiritual temple of God. How in the mind of God would He wants to stop dwelling in us, and go BACK to a physical temple.. It is just beyond my understanding.. Anyway.)

Jesus came to bring this message to Israel ONLY at that time. That was correct. Yet, in the love of God, Jesus did many miracles, healed, and proclaim the good news to the non-Jews. Jesus himself said that He was sent to speak only to the lost sheep of Israel (Mt 15:26).

Subsequently, after the New Covenant was in place, He brought this New Covenant to the whole world, Jews, Gentiles, everybody.

Ephesians 2:11-13 says: This New Covenant (this new system of God in us, and we in God/Jesus) is for ALL peoples. ALL peoples are now brought near to God. We now have hope and have God in this world. We have been brought near by the death of Jesus. We are now fellow citizens and called the household of God (Eph 2:19).

There are many more passages of verses to say that the New Covenant is not only for Israel but to ALL. It is no longer Israel Only (IO). It is Humanity Only (HO). It will take too much space to include them here.

Anyway, there are many other better writers like Micah Stephens, Jonathan Forgor, Daniel Leong who have expounded on this. So one can always read it with an open mind.

Will the kingdom of God be taken away from you..?

Q: I heard a preacher said, "If you do not produce fruits, God will take away the God's kingdom from you and give to those who produces the fruits". Is this true? To me, it's like God is arm-twisting me, trying to force me or blackmail me to produce fruits? What say you.?

Steven: This is not true. Firstly, this passage of the bible is taken from Matthew 21: 43, where it says:

Mt 21:43 "Therefore I say to you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you and given to a nation bringing out its fruits."

Remember: the golden rule: Context is important.

A: You mean the quoted verse to me was taken out of Context.?

Steven: Yes. It was taken out of context.

Firstly, this verse was referring to the Pharisees and chief priests, not to you or me in this 21st Century. The Pharisees heard this words from Jesus, and they too realized that Jesus was speaking about them (Mt 21:45).

Secondly, Mt 21, 22, 23, 24 are all directed to Jerusalem and its temple and the people who are still having a form of Judaism religion. Jesus was against them. He is saying, they will be destroyed. They will be lay desolate. They will be slaughtered soon. Jesus is saying Take heed and listen to what He is saying. Let what He said bear fruit in their lives. So that they will be saved from the massacre (the invasion of Romans on Jerusalem). This was the context of Mt 21:43. Not you and me in this 21st century.

Jesus is saying:
a. There is going to be an end of their Old Mosaic Covenant. The old system is going to be obsolete.
b. There will be a vengeance of God on those who still cling on to the old system and reject the Son (Jesus).
c. God's kingdom will be taken away from them and given to others who will accept the Son.

This is the FRUIT that Jesus wants the Jews to produce and act on it.
Thank God, that according to historians, many believing Jews escaped to the mountains and wilderness and were saved from the Jerusalem and temple massacre.

Days of Wrath ? (Luke 21:22)

Days of Wrath ? (Luke 21:22)

Q: A preacher is saying that this pandemic is the wrath of God, and if we will repent and turn from our sins, God will remove His wrath.

Steven: Yes, I also read about that in the news. I call this preacher (a very important person in his organization) a fool, and he is using bible verses to deceive and to misled. Maybe he will call his people to give more so that their sins are forgiven (there was another preacher who did that). This was similar to what happened during the dark ages off the Catholic church.

Steven: Firstly, the wrath of God was already poured out about 2000 years ago during the period of Jesus Christ. The peak of the wrath of God was at the desolation/destruction of Jerusalem just as what was predicted by Jesus in Luke 21:22.

Luk 21:22 For THESE are the days of vengeance, that ALL things which are written may be fulfilled.

To understand this verse in its CONTEXT, you need to read verse 20 and 21.

Luk 21:20 And when you see JERUSALEM compassed with armies, then know that its destruction has come.

Luk 21:21 And let those in Judea flee to the mountains. And those in its midst, let them go out. And those in the open spaces, let them not go into her.

Jerusalem was referred here. Not Malaysia, not USA (like what Iran said), and definitely not the whole world.

Days of Vengeance = Destruction of Jerusalem.

Everyone was to flee Jerusalem (especially those believers), and nobody was to go into the city.

According to historians and church history, this was exactly what took place. Jerusalem was attacked in a terrible massacre by the Roman army, the blood filled the whole city, the temple was destroyed just as Jesus said it would, and all this happened at the year AD70. You can view an animation of the Jerusalem destruction in AD70 in Youtube (just search for it).

Jesus said that ALL things written about the days of vengeance is now fulfilled. That is about 2000 years ago. DEFINITELY NOT the year 2020 or anytime in future.

The culmination of the Days of Vengeance was the desolation/destruction of Jerusalem : NOT at the Cross, NOT at the sacrifice of Jesus for our sins, NOT at the death of Jesus = BUT at the destruction of Jerusalem. Verses 20, 21, 22 is plain, clear and simple for everyone to read.

Btw, Matt 24 also says the same as Luke 21.

So, how can the preacher said that Covid-19 was the Day of God's Wrath.

Wrong eschatology..?

Wrong eschatology..?

Q: Does that mean that all these while, in the modern organized "church", we were taught wrongly?

Steven: Yes, I am afraid so. The present day church interpretation of eschatology or end times or last days, do not view or understand it like the way Jesus or the early disciples view and understand it.

Many of the present day views of eschatology were started less 200 years ago. Yes, they were cooked up / invented / thought up, about 200 years ago. It could be after the World War 1 and World War 2, when the world was facing great calamity and troubles, that the issues of the world were used to interpret eschatology (such as rapture, 2nd coming, wrath of God, new heaven and new earth etc. )

Steven: The modern day bible teachers on eschatology have no regard for any of the early bible teachers thousands of years ago, who taught eschatology just as Jesus would have taught it.

Q: What do you mean? Do you have any examples?

Steven: For the last 200 years, just google and see for yourself, how many times that people have predicted the end of the world and the rapture is taking place soon. You will be shocked at the number. almost, every year, numerous false prophets, pastors, and preachers tell their people that Jesus is coming, and the rapture is very soon.

I give you an example that happened in Malaysia. In the year 1999, the national body of protestant christian churches (I will not mention the name here, but I believe many know it already) predicted that there is going to be a computer crash when the clock strikes year 2000. That was where the term Y2K bug was derived. Many many churches believed that. The organization started selling survival kits, rations, food, basic arms, so that in the midst of chaos, the christians can go through the tribulation.

DO you know what?

Q: What?

Steven: Y2K came and gone. There was no tribulation, there was no end time, there was no rapture, there was NOTHING. It was just like another day.. People were buying batteries and storing water in hundreds, afraid that the water dams, electrical grid lines would fail - but zilch...nothing. One pastor warn me, that if I don't prepare for this disaster, I am responsible for all their lives.

I was still pastoring the church then, and i refused to fall for such frantic and consumeristic fever to stock up basic necessities. I refused to announce it in our church. I felt pity for those who sold houses, land and properties because their leaders told them that Jesus was coming again, and there was no more need in these worldly goods.

What made me so angry was the national body did not even utter a word of apology for giving false alarms, and wrong predictions.

THis is just one example.

Matt 24 and Luke 21

Qn: Why in particular Matt 24 and Luke 21?

Steven: The 2 most important passage of bible that ties in together all the eschatology teaching is in Mat 24 and Luke 21. In fact, facebook groups, blogs, vlogs, websites have been set up just to explain eschatology from the perspective of Mat 24 and Luke 21.

When you study Mat 24 and Luke 21, you will understand the Old Covenant and New Covenant, you will understand the book of Revelations (still a mysteries book to many people), you will understand that the bible makes sense after all, and all the fears spread by fake and false preachers will go away. And many many more... clarity.

Hebrews 10:25

Church pastors are using this verse to tell people to defy social distancing orders and meet in church.

Hebrews 10:25
not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.

Read the verses before it.

Hebrews 10:1-3

For the law, having a shadow of the good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with these same sacrifices, which they offer continually year by year, make those who approach perfect. For then would they not have ceased to be offered? For the worshipers, once purified, would have had no more consciousness of sins. But in those sacrifices there is a reminder of sins every year.

This verse applied during the age where animals were sacrificed.

Are you living in that age?

Simon Yap

What is a parable?

Jesus did not say a thing to them without using a parable. (Mark 4:34)

What is a parable?

A parable is a succinct, didactic story, in prose or verse, which illustrates one or more instructive lessons or principles. It differs from a fable in that fables employ animals, plants, inanimate objects, or forces of nature as characters, whereas parables have human characters. A parable is a type of analogy. It is also apart of figure of speech.

John 16:25
Though I have been speaking figuratively, a time is coming when I will no longer use this kind of language but will tell you plainly about my Father.

Language expression is an important part in understanding the context of scriptures. Learning how ancient Jews speaks is very important.

God spoke to his prophet in Parables in the OT

Hosea 12:10;
I spoke to the prophets, giving revelation after revelation, and employing parables in the prophetic writings.

The sad thing is when people begin to read parables as though it is some so called spiritual revelation.

Even those who heard it did not think it as such.

Jonathan Forgor

Christian denominations

40 years ago, I read there were 10,000+ christian denominations. This year I read there are 30,000+ denominations.

 When Bible Scriptures are maximised and taken out of context, out of audience relevance, out of historical timeline, new denominations are going to be started for many years to come, and All of them claimed to have revelation and/or to be more correct or more truthful.

Sigh.. What a sad era for the Christian Church.

Religious propaganda

If you can delete all of the religious propaganda you were taught by the institutional "church",
Then go back and read the Bible.

You will understand it more than most Pastors and Religious leaders.

*This is the Truth!

Substitute the word institutional "church" with American "church".

In my opinion, the American "church" is not the Church. Its 99% corrupted.

Hell?

Contrary to popular religious teaching Jesus NEVER - not one time - EVER spoke about "hell". That is a fact! The word was not even invented until 725 AD. He spoke very clearly and specifically about Gehenna, or the Valley of Hinnom, a very real place just outside of the city walls of Jerusalem with a dreaded history where the Jews once sacrificed their children and had them burned alive.

Both Jeremiah and Isaiah referred to this place in their prophecies about the fate of the inhabitants of Jerusalem during the destruction of the city in 586 BC when the Babylonians laid waste to Jerusalem and threw hundreds of thousands of dead Jews into that cursed valley where they were burned up and consumed. Jesus was warning the Jewish leaders of the same fate which was going to come upon them within one generation if they did not repent and receive Him as their Messiah.

This is, in fact, exactly what happened in 70 AD, as chronicled by Josephus in his work, "The Jewish Wars" when the Roman general Titus laid siege to the city of Jerusalem and massacred almost the entire population and threw the dead bodies of the Jews into that very same valley of Gehenna where they were consumed by fire and eaten by worms.

"Hell" is NOT some future mythological place of eternal torment for people who don't accept Jesus. That is a man-made religious myth used to control and manipulate the masses ever since the Dark Ages of Roman Catholicism and has been carried over into Evangelical tradition. It should have been renounced and cast out of the belief system of the church along with the worship of the saints, the infallacy of the papacy, the selling of indulgences and many other pagan practices rejected during the Reformation.

Unfortunately Luther, Calvin, Zwingli, et. al, did not go far enough in the 16th century. It is time to finish the work started during the Reformation and purge the Church of the pagan false belief in a place of eternal punishment called "hell".

Lee O'Hare

Watering down the law..?

People say that we who preach grace are "watering down the law" or "cherry-picking" which laws are to be kept. Actually, it's exactly the opposite of that. When it comes to the law, we're pointing out just how high and lofty the law really is... we're not watering it down. And we're saying that if you're going to be under the law, you have to keep the whole thing perfectly, not just try your best at parts of it.

The ones who are watering down the law and cherry-picking which laws are to be kept are actually those who are preaching the law! If you are preaching that God's law is somehow "doable," you are by default watering it down. You have found a "workaround" to be able to keep something that is meant to be impossible... meaning you yourself have made God's law out to be something less than what it really is.

God didn't put His law there to be doable, but rather to show people that justification by works is impossible, and that having a relationship with Him based on our works is impossible. We can never have a relationship with God based upon our works. Read what the law actually says, not just a memorized nutshell version of it. There are 613 laws (far more than the well-known Big Ten). Look at what each of the laws actually say, and tell me you're not cherry-picking or watering it down when you preach it.

And even more than all of this... please understand that most people who have ever lived are Gentiles (non-Jews). We were never under the law in the first place! We came to God by grace, through faith, having nothing to do with God's law.

Joel Brueseke

CONTEXT OF TEMPLE PRAYER 2 Chronicles 7:14

CONTEXT OF TEMPLE PRAYER 2 Chronicles 7:14

Since the coronavirus outbreak I have been seening this verse up and about.

Each time it is used, people use it to justify the outbreak is "caused by God". In that regard we are to pray so that God avert it.

2 Chronicles 7:12-14:
Later, the LORD appeared to Solomon during the night and told him: “I have heard your prayer and have chosen this place for a sacrificial temple to me.
Whenever I close the skies so there is no rain, or whenever I command locusts to lay waste to the land, or whenever I send epidemics among my people, when my people humble themselves—the ones who are called by my name—and pray, seek me, and turn away from their evil practices, I myself will listen from heaven, I will pardon their sins, and I will restore their land.
.
This verse was made after the temple was built by Solomon. Let me also be very categorical about this verses.

These verses DOES NOT in anyway suggest that God shuts down rain, or brings war or any form if epidemic to attack anyone. I do not know why what people try to gain by being misinformed.

God does not or did not cause any of those issues of death, hate, bigotry, genocide etc in the Old testament attributed to him. Anyone who thinks so is delusional and probably "stupid". (Sorry for the strong words).

Why would God cause something, then turn around to request for prayers to be our savior?

Sometimes I can't fathom why people are bent on using OT passages, evil deeds, to justify their ignorance of God.

This is what happens when people fail to realise the PROGRESSIVE nature and thoughts of ancient people who had a partial or sometimes false understanding of God.

They believed God caused everything on their behalf (good or bad). They aren't far from the truth in that God can only reveal himself to them in that manner since they do not have the kind of "knowledge we have now" through education.
(Likewise, 1000 years from now, people would think we are also wrong about things of God).

The bus stop with Christ. If Jesus can not be the mirror through which God (Love) can be view, such a fellow do not deserve to talk about God or minister to men. All those things you see about God in the OT are just plain shadows.
...

Back to the 2 chronicles 7.

The above verses is in CONTEXT of the TEMPLE. And this is what the Lord said :

2 Chronicles 7:15-16
“Now therefore my eyes will remain open and my ears will REMAIN listening to the prayers that are offered in THIS PLACE. Furthermore, I HAVE chosen and have set apart for myself THIS TEMPLE, intending my name to reside there forever. My eyes and my heart will reside there every day.
.
God is going to answer their prayer based ON or in the TEMPLE. God was telling Solomon his eyes and ears are towards them when the prayer is coming from the TEMPLE.
Let me shock some people.
This TEMPLE DO NOT EXIST AGAIN. So God isn't bound by this statement.
The temple was first destroyed by the Babylonians, rebuilt in by Ezra and Nehemiah. Destroyed and rebuild again by Herod.

JESUS Christ prophesied the Last temple destruction in AD70 (Matthew 24, Mark 13 and Luke 21).

Jesus told the woman at the well that GOD IS NOT BOUND BY TEMPLE WORSHIP or prayer (John 4: 20-28)

So why do people IGNORE the words of Jesus, move away from his view and images as God's expressive self, to continue their delusional ego of justifying "evil" using OT Scriptures is beyond me.

Is JESUS no longer enough?

Today is 19th March, 2020, the TEMPLE does not exist anywhere on the planet earth. The temple has not been in existence since AD70 destroyed by the Romans (John 11:47-49).
.
The delusional idea that the "church building" is God's temple is one big insult to Christ or to God.
What do people take God for?

God does not use "evil" as a means to teach anyone a lesson or make us repent or whatever reason?

Why...
Is JESUS NO LONGER ENOUGH?
Is Jesus sacrifice no longer pleasing to God?
Is Jesus no longer a good mediator to God on our behalf?
Is Jesus no longer the life of all men?
Is Jesus no longer the humanity's image in God's eyes?
Etc......

In situation like this, then people's false understanding of God is revealed. Then their trust for Jesus Christ is exposed.
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Millions of Christians who make all the noise about God or Christ have no idea of the God their worship or claim to know.

Jesus taught us one important thing, God is Human, has feelings and wants the best for us ALWAYS. GOD lives in us, for us, with us and as us.

Christians, is Jesus no longer enough?

Thank God for scientists, who God gives knowledge to help us in situations like this.

God is the Ultimate SCIENTIST. All these shall come to pass.

Jonathan Forgor

The way to stop 'coronavirus'

The way to stop 'coronavirus' is revealed in the Bible!

Pray Psa. 91? Apply His blood? Be pro-Israel? These have been practised. But it's still spreading. Unlike when not one Jew suffered any of the 10 in Egypt, many Christians and Jews also have been afflicted by the present plague. Is there an effective way to stop it?

Covid-19 is transmitted via droplets from nose or mouth. That's how leprosy is spread too. If we look into the Bible and see what Moses did with the leprous, we find the way to curb communicable disease was already revealed long before modern science discovered and applied it.

The leprous had to "wash" himself (Lev. 14:8): that's like sanitizing! He had to have his lip "covered" (Lev. 13:45): that's like wearing a mask! Most importantly, he had to be "quarantined" (Lev. 13:46): that's the ultimate measure in social distancing - lockdown!

It's not saying don't do the spiritual. Praying helps alleviate fear. Claiming no plague can come nigh is assuring (Psa. 91:10). But protection isn't just for a category. Covid-19 must be dealt with for all. As such the Old Covenant idea that pandemic is punishment for the wicked must be shed (Psa. 91:8).

The outbreak will soon pass if we lay aside religious dogma and be practical in action against infection: no handshaking, hugging, or kissing! Be "quarantined" for the time being though we're not a virus host. Consider Him who knew no sin or sickness, was once "locked" outside the camp too (Heb. 13:12).

"Aren't we to trust God for the supernatural?" It doesn't mean we're not trusting God by taking practical measures. We who trust Him for healing, do at the same time seek for medical help in time of need, don't we? If so, the supernatural could well be manifesting through the natural, right?

"Is there now no Moses, standing between the dead and the living, to stay the plague as in Num. 16:48?" Yes, there're many like Moses, and like Jesus, who stood in the gap for all. Kudos to frontline doctors and healthcare workers for toiling tirelessly to save lives, whilst exposed to the risk of infection and death! Bravo to these "evangelists" who "lay hands" on the infected and heal them!

As for us, let's do our part. For once let's observe the "Sabbath". Avoid travelling and crowd mingling. Practise social distancing except in social media where there's no lockdown. But beware of other viruses especially the religious corona. It has killed many. I pray all to have the wisdom and sensibility to keep ourselves protected. Stay safe in Him.

Daniel Leong

Mediator between God and men

Since "there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus" (1 Timothy 2:5), there is nothing else that can stand as a mediator between you and God.

Your good deeds are not the mediator between you and God.
Your turning from sin is not the mediator between you and God.
Your religion is not the mediator between you and God.
Your gifts and talents are not the mediator between you and God.
Your service is not the mediator between you and God.
Your ministry is not the mediator between you and God.
Your church is not the mediator between you and God.
Your pastor is not the mediator between you and God.
Your ability to lead is not the mediator between you and God.
Your sincerity is not the mediator between you and God.
Your wisdom is not the mediator between you and God.
Your politics is not the mediator between you and God.
Your many words are not the mediator between you and God.
Your faithfulness is not the mediator between you and God.
Your soft spirit is not the mediator between you and God.
Your boldness is not the mediator between you and God.
Your righteous indignation is not the mediator between you and God.
Your money/giving is not the mediator between you and God.

The list goes on.

NOTHING takes the place of the Man Christ Jesus! Nothing! HE alone is the Mediator between God and us.

Joel Brueseke

Death is the absence of Love in our heart

Death is the absence of Love in our heart.

1 John 3:14

We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death.

So simple and so clear..

Accepting Christ vs Behavior change ..?

Accepting Christ vs Behavior change ..?

Mr J: “So Pastor, do you think that people can just accept Jesus and then never change, and they are all right?”

Mr P: I think the question is uninformed. You can no more accept Jesus and never change than you can jump in the water and not get wet!

Mr P: Arguing over whether people have accepted Christ based on the things in their lives is to miss the point of God’s exchange program. He is slowly but surely living His life through us. Granted, not all of the fruits of righteousness will bud out at the same time, but they will most assuredly come.

Song: What a beautiful name it is

SONG: WHAT A BEAUTIFUL NAME IT IS

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQWFzMvCfLE

This is one of those songs that we can sing that has all the lyrics in its right scriptural context.

A great song, to enjoy the Presence of God, a wonderful God  who is with us all the time, even though we may not realized it.

Here are its lyrics:


VERSE 1: You were the Word at the beginning One with God the Lord Most High Your hidden glory in creation Now revealed in You our Christ CHORUS 1: What a beautiful Name it is What a beautiful Name it is The Name of Jesus Christ my King What a beautiful Name it is Nothing compares to this What a beautiful Name it is The Name of Jesus VERSE 2: You didn’t want heaven without us So Jesus You brought heaven down My sin was great Your love was greater What could separate us now CHORUS 2: What a wonderful Name it is What a wonderful Name it is The Name of Jesus Christ my King What a wonderful Name it is Nothing compares to this What a wonderful Name it is The Name of Jesus What a wonderful Name it is The Name of Jesus BRIDGE: Death could not hold You The veil tore before You You silence the boast of sin and grave The heavens are roaring The praise of Your glory For You are raised to life again You have no rival You have no equal Now and forever God You reign Yours is the kingdom Yours is the glory Yours is the Name above all names CHORUS 3: What a powerful Name it is What a powerful Name it is The Name of Jesus Christ my King What a powerful Name it is Nothing can stand against What a powerful Name it is The Name of Jesus TAGS: What a powerful Name it is The Name of Jesus What a powerful Name it is The Name of Jesus Words and Music by Ben Fielding & Brooke Ligertwood © 2016 Hillsong Music Publishing. CCLI Song No. 7068424