The Prophets

The Millennial Reign of Christ

/ Bobby Mayfield / 1 Comment

The Smitten Shepherd

Book of Zechariah Chapter 13

Many times we are told that the Jewish people did not know that the Messiah would come to die, yet Zechariah is not the only prophet who writes of these things.

In the Psalms:

Psa 51:2 Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.
Psa 51:3 For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me.

The Prophet Isaiah:

Isa 1:18 Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.

There are other places that taught the Jews about their Savior, yet they chose to disregard those teachings.

The Jews reject many of the writings of the prophets and all the New Testament.

The fact is that we can pick and choose what we believe to be the true Scriptures but in reality, this does not make the other Scriptures to be false.

All the Scriptures are actually written by the Holy Ghost and we have no right to pick and choose what parts to believe and which parts to reject.

2Ti 3:16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:
2Ti 3:17 That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.

We need as much God as we can get, and the best place to get the truth is with all the Holy Ghost inspired Word of God!

So what is the truth of our Savior?

*****Zec 13:1 In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness.

This Scripture refers to the Messiah as that fountain that is opened to those of Jerusalem.

We know that according to the Word of God, the Church is already with the Lord Jesus Christ before this day comes about, so in “what day” is this prophet speaking?

He is speaking of the “day of great mourning” from Chapter 12, when the Jewish people had finally realized the truth of the Messiah whom they had rejected and murdered when He first came.

Remember in Chapter 12 they had realized the truth of the Messiah.

Zec 12:10 And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me “whom they have pierced”, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.

Chapter 13 continues with this theme.

The Lord will cleanse every believer who remains after the 7 years of Tribulation, of their sin and of their false worship.

Remember they had been cleansed of idol worship in those 70 years of captivity, but they had given their voice unto the Beast, the Antichrist, until he sat down as God in the rebuilt Temple.

They had been fooled up until that time, along with all the world!

All that are left, rulers and people, will be cleansed of their sin because the Lord had poured out His “mercy” and His “grace”.

That word “fountain” gives the sense of “living waters”.

The true “fountain” is God the Father “as the fountain of living waters”.

Jer 2:13 For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.

It is God the Son that we see here in verse 1, the fountain opened to the house of David and all those in Jerusalem on that day.

God the Holy Ghost is that river of living waters in the heart of each and every believer.

Joh 7:37 In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink.
Joh 7:38 He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.

What happens beside salvation on “that day”?

*****Zec 13:2 And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD of hosts, that I will cut off the names of the idols out of the land, and they shall no more be remembered: and also I will cause the prophets and the unclean spirit to pass out of the land.

Idols are anything that we have placed in our lives that we hold to be higher than our Father in Heaven.

The Lord is saying, that not only idol worship would cease, but even the names of them would not be remembered.

Mic 5:13 Thy graven images also will I cut off, and thy standing images out of the midst of thee; and thou shalt no more worship the work of thine hands.

You see all idols are manmade and the things of man are never more important than the things of God!

You know we have no need of prophets today!

We have the complete Word of God which tells us the beginning, and the end, and everything in between.

God would never send us another prophet and here, when the Jewish people wake up to the truth of the Messiah, He tells them the same thing.

The Lord will cause all the prophets to pass out of the land, which is the Promised Land and the place where King Jesus will rule this world.

There is no need for prophets, not even today.

Any prophet would be a false prophet if they went against any part of the Word of God!

We have the complete Word of God, there will never be any new revelations that go against the existing Word of God!

Anything that goes against the Word of God is also unclean and all unclean things would pass out of the land of Promises from the Jews and the Church.

So there false prophets who are filled with unclean spirits!

Unclean spirits are lying spirits which work in the false preachers and false teachers we have today!

2Th 2:9 Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
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.

1Ti 4:1 Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;
1Ti 4:2 Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron;
1Ti 4:3 Forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth.

The world that is left after those 7 years of Tribulation, will not want to hear any false teachers! They will only want to hear the truth!

They certainly will not want to hear any false prophet and we should not either today.

The world that was destroyed was a world of lies and deception! The same world we live in today.

*****Zec 13:3 And it shall come to pass, that when any shall yet prophesy, then his father and his mother that begat him shall say unto him, Thou shalt not live; for thou speakest lies in the name of the LORD: and his father and his mother that begat him shall thrust him through when he prophesieth.

False teaching of any sort will be abolished during the Millennial Reign of Jesus Christ.

We see that parents will not allow their children to speak against the Lord like they do today.

Today the parents allow their children to bring home a false doctrine and will not correct them but this will change the parents will rule their own families with a “rod of iron” as will the Lord!

If it were to start up again, the parents would put an end to it immediately.

The people of Millennial reign of Christ, will all honor the commandments of Christ! King Jesus will rule with a rod of iron!

Mar_12:30 And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.

Mat 10:37 He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.
Mat 10:38 And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me.

There will be no place for false teaching during the Millennial reign of Jesus Christ!

Rev_2:27 And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father.

There will be a complete extermination of the unclean spirits, when Jesus Christ sits on His throne in Jerusalem!

Though the Church will be with Jesus, we can still imagine a world where there will be no lies told of any sort.

There will be no deception.
There will be no temptation. (Satan will be bound for 1000 years).
The truth of God will rule each day!

The government will be a Theocracy with King Jesus the true Christ upon the throne.

All the needs of the people will be met, and this includes the truth!

*****Zec 13:4 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the prophets shall be ashamed every one of his vision, when he hath prophesied; neither shall they wear a rough garment to deceive:
Zec 13:5 But he shall say, I am no prophet, I am an husbandman; for man taught me to keep cattle from my youth.

Most all of us can relate to this picture. We were all dirty rotten sinners until we met the Lord Jesus Christ and are now cleansed of our sin.

We are all ashamed of our old lives, at least I know I am.

Even in the days of near perfection there will be some who will rebel.

There will also be those who are accused of rebelling who have not.

Remember the craving to sin lives in each of us as long as we are in this body of flesh.

We are not a people who are good and sometimes do bad things. We are a people who are bad and sometimes we may do something good!

This will not change during the Millennial Reign of Jesus Christ!

The one thing that is true is, that those who have survived the Great Tribulation and now know the truth, will not tolerate those who would again try to teach a false message.

Until they are found out, they will not dress as the prophets of old, nor will they appear as the TV evangelist do today, they will dress the same as those around them.

He shall say “I am no prophet”. He shall say “I am just an average person” who has been taught how to work and make a living.

Remember false prophets prefer to deceive and talk you into supporting them.

They will be hated and sought out during this Millennial Age.

This is one of the reasons that King Jesus must rule with a “Rod of Iron”!

All these people will still have the old sin nature until they are cleansed of that old spirit!

Mic 3:6 Therefore night shall be unto you, that ye shall not have a vision; and it shall be dark unto you, that ye shall not divine; and the sun shall go down over the prophets, and the day shall be dark over them.
Mic 3:7 Then shall the seers be ashamed, and the diviners confounded: yea, they shall all cover their lips; for there is no answer of God.
Mic 3:8 But truly I am full of power by the spirit of the LORD, and of judgment, and of might, to declare unto Jacob his transgression, and to Israel his sin.

These false prophets would rather be seen as slaves rather than confess that they reject the Lord Jesus Christ!

Some of these men or women may even be repenting their sin in order to be cleansed by the Lord, His “Fountain of Grace”.

Idolatry, false prophesy, and unclean spirits will be removed by the Lord Jesus Christ!

*****Zec 13:6 And one shall say unto him, What are these wounds in thine hands? Then he shall answer, Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends.

No doubt this this is prophecy of our Savior when He was nailed to the cross and if you are Christian, then those wounds in the hands of the Lord we will never be forgotten.

These wounds will be a constant reminder of the things that Jesus did for us so we could be saved.

We will see those wounds when He is placing those crowns on our head and will be a reminder and we will toss those crowns back at the feet of Jesus

In fact the wounds our Savior received in paying our sin debt will be a reminder to us all the days though out eternity.

How will we differ from Christ when we have our own glorified body? Our body will not have any blemishes. Our body will be perfect, while the Lord will always show his scars on His body! Those will be His own Crowns of glory

In real time this thing also speaks of the early days of the Millennial reign of Christ

The beginning, of the Millennial Kingdom, may be the toughest years.

Many will go through firery trials before they find the Lord.

Many will question their sincerity.

The false prophet would still carry the signs of self-mutilation and these things could never be hidden.

1Ki 18:28 And they cried aloud, and cut themselves after their manner with knives and lancets, till the blood gushed out upon them.

For some, it may take a chastising from our friends to keep us from doing wrong.

Pro 27:5 Open rebuke is better than secret love.
Pro 27:6 Faithful are the wounds of a friend; but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.

Whatever it takes for us to see the light of Jesus, is acceptable to the Lord.

We should remember the “Grace of God”. When we are washed in the blood of Jesus, we are cleansed of all our sins.

This old false prophet who finally accepts the Lord will be just as saved as we are, even if they still wear the signs of false worship .

We may scoff at these things, but the fact remains that self-mutilation is still seen today in some religions.

The Lord will rid the earth of all false prophets, false teachers, false teachers and anyone who would use lies to deceive others.

We read in verse 2 where even the parents would not allow their child to speak falsely.

Certainly it would be the same for friends. Everyone would be on the lookout for anything false!

We need our Christian friends sometimes to keep us from falling back in sin!

What does Jesus say?

*****Zec 13:7 Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the man that is my fellow, saith the LORD of hosts: smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered: and I will turn mine hand upon the little ones.

It would be good to remember when the Lord Jesus was upon this earth, He was 100% God while being 100% human. When Jesus went back to Heaven He did so in a “Glorified Body”.

The Lord Jesus Christ is the True Shepherd!

That man is that human part that the Lord has made Himself to be, so when we all live together, we will be like Him.

1Jn_3:2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.

Our Lord Jesus has made all these things possible.

Again we see in this passage the Holy Trinity as the phrase “my fellow” signifies “my equal”, my companion. The Lord’s Divine equality with the Father!

The Word was God, and the Word was with God, but He was man as well as God!

Not a natural man but the God Man, the way He presented Himself to us, so we can be with Him and see Him face to face!

1Co_13:12 For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.

He is the True Shepherd because His people need Him to be that way!

He performs a Shepherd’s part because, He will watch over us, He will provide for us, and He will guide us throughout eternity!

These are things He has decided to do Himself!

We are the sheep that God the Father gave to Him to redeem so that He could give us back to God the Father when He presents His Bride.

Rev 21:4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.

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.

It is God the Father, who caused the sword to smite His own Son that all these things be true!

It was God the Father who cause the suffering of our Savior!

The persecuting Jews were just willing instruments in all they did against Him!

They did it voluntarily, but they did it according to the Word of God.

Had they not done so then there would be no Church.
Had they not done so then there would be no redeemed Jews.

Once the Shepherd was smitten, God turned His attention to the “little ones” all those “Babes in Christ” who would grow into the family of God!

This is the message of the Lord of Hosts!

And what of those who deny Him?

Joh 19:6 When the chief priests therefore and officers saw him, they cried out, saying, Crucify him, crucify him. Pilate saith unto them, Take ye him, and crucify him: for I find no fault in him.
Joh 19:7 The Jews answered him, We have a law, and by our law he ought to die, because he made himself the Son of God.

Joh 19:11 Jesus answered, Thou couldest have no power at all against me, except it were given thee from above: therefore he that delivered me unto thee hath the greater sin.

Remember it is the Lord of Hosts who is speaking.

*****Zec 13:8 And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith the LORD, two parts therein shall be cut off and die; but the third shall be left therein.
Zec 13:9 And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The LORD is my God.

At first, it was the Roman army that laid waste to two thirds of the Jews and the world has continued to do this throughout the years since that time.

Many times the world has tried to destroy the Jews, the most recent time on most minds today would be the holocaust by Adolf Hitler, where 6 million Jews were slain for no reason.

We know that by the destruction of the Temple, Jewish worship had been taken away from this people and has never been restored.

What did God promise?

“I will bring a third part through the fire”. “And refine them” “and try them” and the day is coming they will call upon His name!

Eze 5:12 A third part of thee shall die with the pestilence, and with famine shall they be consumed in the midst of thee: and a third part shall fall by the sword round about thee; and I will scatter a third part into all the winds, and I will draw out a sword after them.
Eze 5:13 Thus shall mine anger be accomplished, and I will cause my fury to rest upon them, and I will be comforted: and they shall know that I the LORD have spoken it in my zeal, when I have accomplished my fury in them.
Eze 5:14 Moreover I will make thee waste, and a reproach among the nations that are round about thee, in the sight of all that pass by.
Eze 5:15 So it shall be a reproach and a taunt, an instruction and an astonishment unto the nations that are round about thee, when I shall execute judgments in thee in anger and in fury and in furious rebukes. I the LORD have spoken it.

It should be obvious that Jehovah is not through with this promise as of yet, but all the signs indicate that this is soon coming to an end.

1) The Church will be taken out.
2) The 7 years of Tribulation where the refinement of the Jews will succeed.
3) These Jews will call upon the name of the Lord.

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

Then the Promised 1000 years of King Jesus upon the throne of David.

Amen

Let’s Pray!

Losing Our Faith

/ Bobby Mayfield / Leave a comment

Polluted Privileges

Book of Malachi Chapters 1-3

Malachi is the last book of the Old Testament

We have seen in our study of the Old Testament, where Israel would sin, and the Lord would chastise them over and over again.

Jehovah would scatter them across foreign soil, and He would allow them to return back to the Promised Land. These things happened over and over again, until God will chastise them one more time and then go away for 400 or more years and let the world see what happens.

All these things are still the plan of God from the beginning, but these things are beginning to sink in.

What was happening?

They doubted God’s love.
They doubted God’s Word.
They doubted God’s great promises.
They doubted God’s justice.
They doubted God’s willingness to do anything for them.
They doubted God’s willingness to do anything against them.

All these things happened because they had lost their faith.

They had forgotten the “mercy” of God, written in all the Old Testament!

All these things then led to rebellion against the Lord and they were blaspheming His Holy Name.

Whenever sin and doubt become our religion, corruption becomes evident in our lives!

Before we start there is a passage we need to look at:

There is a verse in the Book of Malachi that is not in our lesson today.

Mal 1:5 And your eyes shall see, and ye shall say, The LORD will be magnified from the border of Israel.

We can look at this Scripture both ways.

It could mean that the Lord’s name will be magnified from all the border of Israel inward, and this will take place in our future.

It could also mean that the Lord’s name will be magnified from the borders of Israel outward to all other nations, and we know that this will also take place.

Add this next Scripture:

Psa 83:17 Let them be confounded and troubled for ever; yea, let them be put to shame, and perish:
Psa 83:18 That men may know that thou, whose name alone is JEHOVAH, art the most high over all the earth.

It is the Lord God Jehovah who is the Most-High over all this Earth who is getting no respect!

We can see this in America, and we see this in the modern day church.

The Book of Malachi was written by the Prophet Malachi and “Malachi” means “the messenger of the Lord”.

The Book of Malachi was probably written around 433 BC just over 400 years before the time of Jesus Christ.

During these 400 years, Persia would fall to Greece and then Greece would fall to Rome, who ruled the known world when the Lord Jesus was born in Bethlehem.

I guess you have all heard the latest news from the Muslim, “that Palestine ruled Bethlehem at the time of Christ, so Jesus is a Palestinian Muslim”.

It was Rome who first called the area around and near Israel, Palestinia, and the Jews were on the land at that time even though they again were a conquered nation.

Malachi was alive during the time Persia ruled the majority of the known world.

Malachi remained true to the Word of God, as did Ezra and Nehemiah.

The Book of Malachi remains as a Book of the Bible that calls God’s people back to faithfulness.

We know that many in Israel were returning again to their old sinful ways by the words given to Malachi by the Holy Spirit.

Malachi also described the coming of God’s Judgment.

Again as most of the other Prophets, the Book of Malachi gives us a glimpse into the Character of God!

It truly breaks God’s heart for His children to return to sin!!!!!!!!

We see that we are deeply loved by God!

If we want to know what God is doing right at this very moment? God has His eyes on us!!!!!!!

So let’s begin

*****Mal 1:6 A son honoureth his father, and a servant his master: if then I be a father, where is mine honour? and if I be a master, where is my fear? saith the LORD of hosts unto you, O priests, that despise my name. And ye say, Wherein have we despised thy name?
Mal 1:7 Ye offer polluted bread upon mine altar; and ye say, Wherein have we polluted thee? In that ye say, The table of the LORD is contemptible.

I believe God is asking this same question of us here today!!

What is the most common sin of God’s people?

It is written right here in this passage. “We do not always show reverence to our Father in Heaven”.

We do not always give God our very best, and the Lord will not accept our second best!

Remember, the Lord is sanctified, it is we who need to be sanctified.

We owe our allegiance to our Savior, we owe our life to our Savior.

In fact, we owe everything we have, physically and Spiritually, to our Savior.

Yes this includes our tithes, the very first part of any income.

Even in the Christian world, we have lost our fear of our Awesome God!

Yes, He is the God of love.
Yes, He is the God of creation.

He is also the God of all Power!

I believe when we first see Him, we may be hunting some place to hide from our terrible God, until He says, “peace be with you”.

Deu_7:21 Thou shalt not be affrighted at them: for the LORD thy God is among you, a mighty God and terrible.

If we fear anything in this world, then we do not know how powerful is our God!

Anytime we go against God the Father, or His dear Son or go against the Holy Spirit, we have dishonored our Savior, who gave it all just so we would have the opportunity to spend eternity with Him!

If we make up our own laws to live by, we have said the table of the Lord is contemptible!

Where have we despised the name of God?

Here is what God said to these Jews.

*****Mal 1:8 And if ye offer the blind for sacrifice, is it not evil? and if ye offer the lame and sick, is it not evil? offer it now unto thy governor; will he be pleased with thee, or accept thy person? saith the LORD of hosts.

If we have not given our very best, we have offered the blind to God for a sacrifice!

If the things we offer God are tarnished in any way, we have offered the lame and the sick!

If we try in any way to hold onto our hidden sin, God will not be pleased with us!

These are facts!

If we do not worship God in Spirit and Truth, we have not reverenced God.
If we do not adhere to all the Word of God, we have not reverenced God.
If we give in to our temptations, we have not reverenced God.
If we do not pick up our cross and follow the Lord daily, we have not reverenced God!
If we have not sacrificed our heart to the will of God, we have not reverenced our God!
If we have taken the name of the Lord in vain, we have shown the Lord we do not love Him as we say we do!

If the Lord does not live in our heart, we are not even God’s child!

We should ask ourselves this same question! Will He be pleased with us?

What is God’s answer?

*****Mal 1:14 But cursed be the deceiver, which hath in his flock a male, and voweth, and sacrificeth unto the Lord a corrupt thing: for I am a great King, saith the LORD of hosts, and my name is dreadful among the heathen.

What is the actual truth? To worship the Lord in a way that goes against what He teaches us, is worse than not worshiping the Lord at all!

We need to take a moment and let that sink in!

What did God say to the Jews?

Isa 1:13 Bring no more vain oblations; incense is an abomination unto me; the new moons and sabbaths, the calling of assemblies, I cannot away with; it is iniquity, even the solemn meeting.

When we just worship to be worshiping, we are deceiving ourselves!

If we forget God’s “mercy”, we have forgotten why we worship!

If we forget we are saved by “faith” we have forgotten why we worship!

If we have forgotten God’s “judgment”, we have forgotten it is the Lord that washed us in His blood!

What is going on in the modern-day church? We see the offerings to God without repentance!

It will just not work that way! We should think on “Faith” and “Repentence” as the first steps in the right direction!

We cannot just offer things to the Lord, thinking we can appease Him!

We must understand that we are full of sin as long as we are in these bodies of flesh, but we still cannot abuse God’s “Grace”!

Repent, is a word we do not hear much of other than here at Gethsemane!

We need Pastors and Preachers to teach the truth!

*****Mal 2:7 For the priest’s lips should keep knowledge, and they should seek the law at his mouth: for he is the messenger of the LORD of hosts.

What is a true man of God?

1) He is divinely called: There is no such thing as choosing to be a preacher, it is a special calling of God!
2) He must be a man of profound reverence: This is a respectful, submissive, attitude toward the Lord God, built upon affection and esteem for the truth.
3) He must be a man of truthfulness: Because the Word of God is true and it must be taught as the truth, with no higher authority.
4) He must be a man devoted to his calling, unwavering.
5) He must be devoted to the Lord and this devotion passed down to his flock.
6) He must be a man of intelligence, not worldly book learning, but the wisdom of God through knowledge of the Word of God.

God only has “one standard” for those He has called to preach the “Gospel”!

That one standard is “for” every Preacher, to guard the truth of the Scriptures!

What happens if they fail? They will face the “judgment” of God.

This also holds true for every teacher!

We have the law that came from God’s mouth, it is the Bible, the preserved Word of God, from the original Greek and Hebrew text.

If not, we will fall into the curse of God!

God’s blessing will turn into the curse of God!

That good Pastor will turn away from all iniquity.

A good Pastor will never depart from the truth of God!

*****Mal 2:8 But ye are departed out of the way; ye have caused many to stumble at the law; ye have corrupted the covenant of Levi, saith the LORD of hosts.
Mal 2:9 Therefore have I also made you contemptible and base before all the people, according as ye have not kept my ways, but have been partial in the law.

What had these priests done? They had perverted the Word of God to please great men!

They had twisted the Word of God to serve what God had forbidden!

They had only given the Law of God, that suited their own benefit!

Sounds just like the many who pervert the Word of God today and people say the Old Testament is not good enough for the modern-day Church.

Shame on all those who call themselves “called of God” yet they serve their own calling.

Jer 28:15 Then said the prophet Jeremiah unto Hananiah the prophet, Hear now, Hananiah; The LORD hath not sent thee; but thou makest this people to trust in a lie.
Jer 28:16 Therefore thus saith the LORD; Behold, I will cast thee from off the face of the earth: this year thou shalt die, because thou hast taught rebellion against the LORD.
Jer 28:17 So Hananiah the prophet died the same year in the seventh month.

How can a man preach about sin, when they are deliberately withholding their own sin to suit themselves?

The job of the Christian Minister, must bring all the Word of God, fearlessly, faithfully, firmly, and impartially!!!!!!!

They are never sent of God to tickle ears.
They are never to modify the Word of God to hinder its application to anyone just because of their social status.
They must present the Word of God as the perfect Word of God that it is!

They must never confirm men in their sins!

Even today we have gay pastors in certain denominations. This goes against the Scriptures!

We have multitudes claiming that God created them “to sinful lives” and therefore they need not repent to Biblical truth.

Each one of these who pervert the Word of God, will be destroyed and they will be accountable for their destruction of others, who believed them!

They will be rejected of God and condemned by the people they had misled!

Rom 6:13 Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.
Rom 6:14 For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.
Rom 6:15 What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid.
Rom 6:16 Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?
Rom 6:17 But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.

Gal_2:17 But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves also are found sinners, is therefore Christ the minister of sin? God forbid.

What is the truth of these men?

*****Mal 2:17 Ye have wearied the LORD with your words. Yet ye say, Wherein have we wearied him? When ye say, Every one that doeth evil is good in the sight of the LORD, and he delighteth in them; or, Where is the God of judgment?

When fake ministers and fake Christians call evil good and good evil.

When we ask where is the God of Judgment?

We must understand that these people will be held accountable for their foolish life!!!!!

Every minister is called of God to instruct us in the ways of the Lord Jesus Christ who adhered to every law in the Word of God and did everything He set out to do for the glory of God!!!!!!!

That word “wearied” means these men are trying God’s patience!!

Those who think along these lines today, really think that God does not care about His creation!

What is the truth of our God?

2Pe 3:7 But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.
2Pe 3:8 But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.
2Pe 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
2Pe 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.

We have to believe God knows what He is doing, and His patience will run out one day!

What did God say?

God said He would send John the Baptist to prepare for the Messiah.

*****Mal 3:1 Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts.

God said He would send a real messenger because they were not His messengers!

These men knew about the Messiah, because they knew of the true prophets that they had rejected.

We should understand these people had seen the work of God take place in their own life time.

Malachi was a prophet sent of God in the days of Nehemiah.

They had seen the words of Jeremiah, Daniel, and Ezekiel come true in their lifetime.

Who can really say, what were they thinking, but it should be obvious, they were only thinking of themselves and they were not worried about the coming of the Messiah?

Malachi was the last prophet they would see for more than 400 years but they did not care at this time.

What do we know? The Temple had been rebuilt, the city of Jerusalem had been restored and maybe some places still showed signs of the destruction of Nebuchadnezzar.

The walls of Jerusalem had been rebuilt, which gave them that sense of security and all these things had been dedicated to the Lord.

A Jew, Queen Esther of Persia was in a place to help the Jews for her life time and again thru her son who would also be the next king.

Some would think the Jews had everything going for them so why would the Levites act in such a way?

There are corrupt priest in every age and every life time just as there are, today! Even today no one is really concerned with the coming of the Messiah for the second and final time.

The prophet Malachi offered up the truth of God and the truth of the Scriptures!

*****Mal 3:2 But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner’s fire, and like fullers’ soap:
Mal 3:3 And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness.

All our hope rest in the Word of God which we have seen over and over again, God has proven to these people that He loves them, but he will not tolerate those who abuse the truth of God, nor those that teach them it is OK to do so!

In actuality Malachi 3:2 tells us of the First and the Second Coming of the Lord.

What was the world like when the Lord first came?

The world was under world-wide domination. First the Babylonians, then the Persians, then the Greeks and at the time of Christ, the Romans. (The Heathen)

For the most part the Jewish leadership had strayed away from the Word of God even though God will always have a certain group of people, a remnant, who will stay faithful.

What will the world be like when the Lord returns? Guess what, it will not be much different. All the Superpowers are flexing their muscles to see who will come out on top, and many Christians have left their 1st love and most of the rest can only be said to be “lukewarm” Christians.

What did Jesus say?

Luk_18:8 I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?

Add to this:

Luk_17:28 Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded;

Add to this:

Luk_17:26 And as it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man.

Anyone in their right mind can see that we are in those last days of the Church Age, and then these other things will take affect and the Lord Jesus will return just as He says!

No one will be able to abide at His coming accept a few Jewish people, a remnant of what it could have been!

“And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness.”

John the Baptist did pave the way for the coming of the Lord, but the coming of the Lord will be in two stages. At His first coming the Lord established the Church which was certainly pleasant unto the Lord, but it is at the Second Coming of the Lord when Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasant to the Lord!

****Mal 3:4 Then shall the offering of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant unto the LORD, as in the days of old, and as in former years.

Every age has its peculiar features. It is our duty to study the past. A knowledge of the past is often the basis of safety in the present, and stability in the future.

We should not be fooled, it is the days of old that created these present days and one reason is, we seem to never remember the mistakes of our past. No Age can begin for itself, since the time of Adam and yes Adam looked just like humans do today!

We cannot understand the present without acknowledgment of the past!

Today in America, there is a goal to erase the past, and this one thing will be the most foolish thing that could ever happen.

I should repeat myself there is a goal to erase only the portions of the past that does not fit in with the direction a certain group of people would have us to go!

It is History that teaches us, so we do not make the same mistakes!

Jewish history should have been the answer to the mistakes the Jews made at the time of Jesus Christ!

The days of old were full of Divine revelations.

What we should ask ourselves, just how many times should God ask us to “repent” until He moves on, and He will move on!

Eph_4:30 And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.

What do we see in the past of the Jews?

The Bible is God’s record of the “days of old.” We may learn what He will be to us in our days, by what He was to men then. His faithfulness, mercy, and truth are written unmistakably on those wondrous days.

*****Mal 3:7 Even from the days of your fathers ye are gone away from mine ordinances, and have not kept them. Return unto me, and I will return unto you, saith the LORD of hosts. But ye said, Wherein shall we return?

God still says “REPENT”!

We must understand that as soon as a nation is prosperous in worldly things, it is at this point when they will begin to slip.

We have seen this over and over again in the Old Testament!

What is melancholy?

Full of misery; distressful; wretched; afflictive; that may or does produce great evil and grief; as a melancholy event.

Today we see a great falling away from the ordinances of God and the results is the nation we see today only a glimmer of what it could still be!

Malachi describes what happened to Israel when they continually had a similar falling away, even over and over again.

To repent is to return to the path of the Lord and never stray again!

It is not here a few days and then there a few days and then start all over again.

In the end we all have robbed God!

*****Mal 3:8 Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings.
Mal 3:9 Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation.

We should understand that all we have actually belongs to God because He gave it to us!

By the Laws of Moses given to these of Israel, a tenth of all produce, a tenth of all the flocks and of cattle, belonged to God and “MUST” be offered to Him.

It is this tenth that was assigned to the Levites for their services at the Temple, and to the people for teaching them the Scriptures and their meaning.

In order for them to do this thing, they had to constantly learn the Scripture themselves.

Num 18:20 And the LORD spake unto Aaron, Thou shalt have no inheritance in their land, neither shalt thou have any part among them: I am thy part and thine inheritance among the children of Israel.
Num 18:21 And, behold, I have given the children of Levi all the tenth in Israel for an inheritance, for their service which they serve, even the service of the tabernacle of the congregation.

Num 18:24 But the tithes of the children of Israel, which they offer as an heave offering unto the LORD, I have given to the Levites to inherit: therefore I have said unto them, Among the children of Israel they shall have no inheritance.

You see, it was not about giving to the Church as it was sustaining those who God had appointed the care of the Church on a fulltime basis.

Nehemiah dealt with this when he was Governor of Israel, and none of this tenth was for Persia because the king had stated that Israel would not be taxed.

Nehemiah had to return to Persia for a time that, some say was 3 years, but when he returned to Israel, he had to deal with this same things again.

You see we do not understand this process!

If we give God a tenth of what he has given to us, He will bless us by giving us more.

This is not a prosperity thing, like the more we give the more God gives, this is a blessing for being obedient!

Now this law was for the Jews, but it is also a guideline for giving to the Church for the same reasons!

In reality this is the first step in departing from God!

You see this in an outward sign of our inward heart for God!

When we do not support the work of God, how can we say we love the Lord with all our heart.

Mat 22:37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
Mat 22:38 This is the first and great commandment.

This seems like such a little thing our tithes, but in reality, it reflects our love for our Savior.

This was the same meaning given in the Laws of Moses!

God is serious about this thing!

That curse meant they would have even less to give which meant they would have even less for themselves and their families.

Is this cruel? No it is just fact!

Rev_2:4 Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.

Our first love is the Lord Jesus Christ, if we cannot show an outward love for Him, how can we say we love Him with all our heart?

*****Mal 3:10 Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.

What was happening at this time in Israel?

The people were robbing God of tithes and offerings. (see how these are two separate things)

The priests were polluting God’s altar.

They gave things to God that they would not give to their neighbor.

Yet they could not realize the evil they were doing!

You see sin brings its own punishment!

This tenth came about before the laws of Moses, all the way back to Abraham before Israel was even a nation, so how can we say that it does not apply to the Church.

Besides the tithe (a tenth) there is the freewill offering for specific needs of others.

We must understand that God as our Creator owns all His creation, and should not our owner reap part of the rewards that He gives us!

Here is another place in the Scriptures where God promises a blessing.

How can we turn down the blessings of God?

Amen

Let’s Pray!

The Messiah Will Bring A Great Victory

/ Bobby Mayfield / Leave a comment

The Great Victory the Messiah Brings

Book of Isaiah 25

As Christians it seems that sometimes as we read and try to understand Bible prophecy, we come away with more questions than we have answers but in reality we need to spend more time in the Scriptures and we certainly must not listen to old wives fables and vain things that can amount to nothing nor to anyone who has already rejected the Word of God!

In truth, we need to see the fulfilled prophecies of God and how they relate to Bible history and our own history and then, we can begin to understand what God is saying. Prophecies that have been fulfilled are now behind us, history!

2Ti 2:15  Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. 
2Ti 2:16  But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness.

The thing we should clearly understand is, the fact that in the Lord Jesus Christ there can be no loss at all, and the other side of that is, outside of the Lord Jesus Christ there can be no long term victory at all!

All things we will see, even in our own future, will reveal the plans and the purposes of God, if we pay attention and be obedient to the Word of God!

If we keep the main thing, the main thing, we will realize that God has a plan and He just wants us all to be part of His plan!

It should be clear to us that the Lord wants us to know about Him or He would have never revealed Himself to us, so He certainly will never try to hide anything from us!

We should also understand that the “terribleness” of God is another very good reason to place our trust in Him!

What should we know of those who continue to follow in the works of Satan?

Isa 24:5  The earth also is defiled under the inhabitants thereof; because they have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinance, broken the everlasting covenant. 
Isa 24:6  Therefore hath the curse devoured the earth, and they that dwell therein are desolate: therefore the inhabitants of the earth are burned, and few men left.

Isa 24:17  Fear, and the pit, and the snare, are upon thee, O inhabitant of the earth. 

Isa 24:19  The earth is utterly broken down, the earth is clean dissolved, the earth is moved exceedingly. 
Isa 24:20  The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, and shall be removed like a cottage; and the transgression thereof shall be heavy upon it; and it shall fall, and not rise again. 

These are all the results of works of Satan!

God does not do bad things, God only does “righteous” things!

But we should clearly understand, it is a righteous thing for God to chastise His believers!
It is a righteous thing for God to “Judge” all unbelievers and destroy them out of His land!

The non-believer may see these things as unrightous but if they repented it would changed their attitude!

When the Messiah returns, all those who have rejected Him will only be able to imagine a world that is coming to an end but in reality it will only be the Lord doing what He said He would do to bring new life into this world for a period of time of at least 1000 years and after this eternity!

The Church will already be in Heaven, our victory won, but the Church will then return with the Lord at His Second Coming.

It is during this time of destruction known simply as “Jacob’s Trouble”(The Seven Years of Tribulation) that the Jews will repent and return to the Lord and that victory is soon to be in the making.

And God’s redeemed Jews, will then sing a new song:

Let’s Begin:

*****Isa 25:1  O LORD, thou art my God; I will exalt thee, I will praise thy name; for thou hast done wonderful things; thy counsels of old are faithfulness and truth. 

We should be able to see that the relationship of Jehovah to His people has now become personal!

God is seeking a close and personal relationship with each of us and with all of His creation!

God’s people, the Jews will have realized that the Lord has done exactly what He said He would do.

They will realize what Moses had said, was true.
They will realize what all the prophets had said, was true.
They will realize that all those Psalms they had sung regularly in their worship services, were are true.
They will then realize, that the Lord Jesus Christ is exactly who He said He was!

They will connect their selfishness with the history of their own nation all these years and repent and return to the Lord!

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

Rev 15:3  And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints. 

The world is fast approaching the 8 Billion mark in population but at the end of Jacob’s Trouble only a few will have survived. Even if it is Millions it will be a far cry from those Billions!

Those that remain will praise the name of the Lord and we already know that Jehovah God will at this time, fulfill all the promises He made to the Jews!

There may also be a few Gentiles who had never gotten the opportunity to hear the “Gospel” and accept it or to reject it, they will then at that time also get that opportunity.

Most all those, probably all those, who have rejected the “Gospel” during the “Church Age” will be destroyed, as in the days of Noah!

1Th 2:15  Who both killed the Lord Jesus, and their own prophets, and have persecuted us; and they please not God, and are contrary to all men: 
1Th 2:16  Forbidding us to speak to the Gentiles that they might be saved, to fill up their sins alway: “for the wrath is come upon them to the uttermost”.

Many prophecies of the Bible have already been fulfilled and are now history but many more are to come, though most of them concern the promises to the nation of Israel.

The truth is, whether we know true faith or not, God will always be “faithful” to Himself and to all of His Scriptures!

1Co 1:9  God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord. 

The next truth is, that it is impossible for God to lie! So the Scriptures are all the truth. We must rightly divide the Word of God! We must understand clearly who the Lord is talking too, while also realizing that we are to learn from all the Word of God.

Heb 6:17  Wherein God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel, confirmed it by an oath: 
Heb 6:18  That by two immutable things, “in which it was impossible for God to lie”, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us: 

It boils down to, do you believe what God says or not? The Bible is “an all or nothing book”!

The “Bread of Life” is not some cafeteria style plan, to pick and choose the meal that suits you and then reject the part you do not like!

2Ti 3:16  “All scripture” is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 
2Ti 3:17  That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works. 

By the end of the Tribulation Period, the world will have witnessed the truth of God in full view and those that are left will be in agreement, “O LORD, thou art my God; I will exalt thee”.

*****Isa 25:2  For thou hast made of a city an heap; of a defenced city a ruin: a palace of strangers to be no city; it shall never be built.
Isa 25:3  Therefore shall the strong people glorify thee, the city of the terrible nations shall fear thee. 
 
As often as we see the term Babylon in the books of the prophets, we should clearly understand that in prophecy this Babylon is not just some ancient city that is to be destroyed but in reality it is the seat of the Antichrist!

It is the seat of his false religion.
It is the seat of this world he has influenced.

The seat of the Antichrist will be destroyed by the end of the 7 years of Tribulation, also called the time of “Jacob’s Trouble”.

Jer 51:37  And Babylon shall become heaps, a dwellingplace for dragons, an astonishment, and an hissing, without an inhabitant. 

A clear understanding can be realized in the Book of Revelation chapter 18.

In fact the old city of Babylon and Nineveh stand in that condition today!

Babylon was the metropolis of the pagan world and God has destroyed it as He said! It has never been rebuilt in that same location!

But Babylon, the seat of the Antichrist, is the same world Satan used to entice the Lord Jesus Christ.

Mat 4:8  Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; 
Mat 4:9  And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me. 
Mat 4:10  Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. 

This is the seat of the Antichrist, the spirit of the Babylon of our day, that will cease to exist when the Lord returns!

Isa 13:19  And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldees’ excellency, shall be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah. 
Isa 13:20  It shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation: neither shall the Arabian pitch tent there; neither shall the shepherds make their fold there. 

One day in the near future in our world where the spirit of Babylon has become the seat of the Antichrist, there will be a sigh of relief at the fall of this sinful and evil thing that has brought ruin to God’s creation.

What glorious thing will happen because of this ruin?

These same Jews who will have already witnessed the “Rapture” of the Church will at that time also witness the fall of the Antichrist.

The Jews will then be stirred up to worship the Lord and see the promises to Abraham and to David fulfilled, but even much more than that.

Psa 66:3  Say unto God, How terrible art thou in thy works! through the greatness of thy power shall thine enemies submit themselves unto thee. 
Psa 66:4  All the earth shall worship thee, and shall sing unto thee; they shall sing to thy name. Selah. 

Even many Gentiles will repent of their sins and begin worship the Lord!

This will not included those that have rejected the Lord in the Church Age for they will have all been destroyed!

*****Isa 25:4  For thou hast been a strength to the poor, a strength to the needy in his distress, a refuge from the storm, a shadow from the heat, when the blast of the terrible ones is as a storm against the wall. 
Isa 25:5  Thou shalt bring down the noise of strangers, as the heat in a dry place; even the heat with the shadow of a cloud: the branch of the terrible ones shall be brought low. 

We certainly may not understand all the things in the time of “Jacob’s Trouble” but we can be sure there are those who are poor and in need through no fault of their own. They may have been led astray or many other things but God will never totally forsake such people until He as allowed His own time of repentance!

Even today God feeds this entire world and only a small portion of this world truly loves Him!

When the Jews would not accept the “Bread of Life”, the Word of God, God still fed them with the “Manna” from Heaven!

Isa 41:17  When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue faileth for thirst, I the LORD will hear them, I the God of Israel will not forsake them. 

But God always warned them:

Mat 4:4  But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. 

So in reality there will be many souls saved out of the Great Tribulation!

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

Notice, most of all of the new Gentile believers after the “rapture” of the Church, had been murdered for their beliefs!

BUT, God will have silenced all those who have made such great noise against Christianity!

The persecution of believers is sometimes compared to dry heat as it has parched the grasses but God will bring a cloud that will provide shade and even moisture as He protects those who have not had the opportunity to know Him!

It is true, that the goal of the “Gospel” is to reach every individual before this time arrives but we can also know that this may not actually take during the Church Age.

The “branch” of the “terrible ones”, is any “power” that those who are in direct support of the Antichrist, had over God’s people. This “branch” represents the false power of Satan which in fact was no power at all, at least over the Messiah.

Rev 18:9  And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication and lived deliciously with her, shall bewail her, and lament for her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning, 

God will always bring down the enemies of His people in every age!

*****Isa 25:6  And in this mountain shall the LORD of hosts make unto all people a feast of fat things, a feast of wines on the lees, of fat things full of marrow, of wines on the lees well refined. 

This mountain would be Mount Zion but it could also be a “type” of the Church, as all God’s people, Jew and Gentile alike will sit down together to the “the Great Supper in God’s Kingdom”.

Luk 14:16  Then said he unto him, A certain man made a great supper, and bade many: 
Luk 14:17  And sent his servant at supper time to say to them that were bidden, Come; for all things are now ready. 
Luk 14:18  And they all with one consent began to make excuse. The first said unto him, I have bought a piece of ground, and I must needs go and see it: I pray thee have me excused. 
Luk 14:19  And another said, I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them: I pray thee have me excused. 
Luk 14:20  And another said, I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come. 
Luk 14:21  So that servant came, and shewed his lord these things. Then the master of the house being angry said to his servant, Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in hither the poor, and the maimed, and the halt, and the blind. 
Luk 14:22  And the servant said, Lord, it is done as thou hast commanded, and yet there is room. 
Luk 14:23  And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled. 
Luk 14:24  For I say unto you, That none of those men which were bidden shall taste of my supper. 

We must also realize that the difference in providing food for the needy, compared to providing the “Gospel” to the lost, is like a meal that has become a “feast”!

1Co 2:14  But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. 

Truth, mercy, assurance, pardon, peace, and “Grace” become a feast of fat things.

The doctrines of God are well refined and abundant in Spirit and in purity and cetainly in holiness!

Jer 31:12  Therefore they shall come and sing in the height of Zion, and shall flow together to the goodness of the LORD, for wheat, and for wine, and for oil, and for the young of the flock and of the herd: and their soul shall be as a watered garden; and they shall not sorrow any more at all. 
Jer 31:13  Then shall the virgin rejoice in the dance, both young men and old together: for I will turn their mourning into joy, and will comfort them, and make them rejoice from their sorrow. 

God will have put down all the evil in this world!

*****Isa 25:7  And he will destroy in this mountain the face of the covering cast over all people, and the vail that is spread over all nations. 
Isa 25:8  He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth: for the LORD hath spoken it. 

What is that covering that is cast over all people? It is the vail that Satan has cast over the human heart.

When the Five books of Moses were read, the veil was upon the heart of God’s people, not upon Moses.

2Co 3:15  But even unto this day, when Moses is read, the vail is upon their heart. 

When the Old Testament was read in the time of Christ Jesus, the veil was upon the heart of most all the Jews, not upon Christ Himself. In fact Christ removed that veil of the eyes but the veil of Satan remained cast over the hearts of the unbelievers.

2Co 3:14  But their minds were blinded: for until this day remaineth the same vail untaken away in the reading of the old testament; which vail is done away in Christ. 

It is only in those who have repented and returned to the Lord, that this veil has been removed!

2Co 3:16  Nevertheless when it shall turn to the Lord, the vail shall be taken away. 

What is that veil? The veil of human depravity and/or natural corruption, the veil of blindness, caused by Satan!

Rom 3:20  Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin. 
Rom 3:21  But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; 
Rom 3:22  Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: 
Rom 3:23  For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

At the end of the Tribulation Period, there will also be a veil of sorrowing.

We know that the Jews would cover their heads when they felt shame and were confounded. They will now feel ashamed and sorrowful for having rejected the Lord Jesus Christ all these years!

Jer 14:2  Judah mourneth, and the gates thereof languish; they are black unto the ground; and the cry of Jerusalem is gone up. 
Jer 14:3  And their nobles have sent their little ones to the waters: they came to the pits, and found no water; they returned with their vessels empty; they were ashamed and confounded, and covered their heads. 
Jer 14:4  Because the ground is chapt, for there was no rain in the earth, the plowmen were ashamed, they covered their heads. 

In fact the veil of sorrow and shame, will have covered all nations that have survived this terrible time of God’s Wrath!

God’s plan also includes removing the one thing that every human fears and that is “death”.

What did God say to Adam?

Gen 2:16  And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: 
Gen 2:17  But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof “thou shalt surely die”. 

Adam had never heard the word “die” but the consequences of his actions have remained with all humans, all animals, and even all God’s creation from that point forward.

Rom 8:21  Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. 
Rom 8:22  “For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now”. 
Rom 8:23  And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body. 

Death has always been a covering of gloom over all people!

Death will be conquered for all God’s people at the Second Coming of Christ Jesus, the Messiah!

There probably have been more tears poured out over the sorrow of death than any other thing in the human life.

SO, What God has done for the Church will be improved on, when the Messiah returns!

1Co 15:53  For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. 
1Co 15:54  So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. 
1Co 15:55  O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? 
1Co 15:56  The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. 
1Co 15:57  But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 

In God’s New World, there will never be one tear shed because of death. In fact there will no tears in Heaven after this point forever more.

In Heaven there be nothing to cry about except maybe tears of “JOY”.

Rev 21:4  And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. 
Rev 21:5  And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful. 

We should also be clear, all those tears that have been shed in grief and sorrow, because of the work of Satan, will not have been shed in vain!

Psa 30:4  Sing unto the LORD, O ye saints of his, and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness. 
Psa 30:5  For his anger endureth but a moment; in his favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, “but joy cometh in the morning”. 

We hear a lot about guarantees in this world but none are as important as this one that says “for the Lord hath spoken it”!

When the Lord speaks, His words are always guaranteed to be true!

There will be no one left who will rebuke God’s people, there will be no one left who will not love the Jew!

Why?

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

You see, God has only offered His free gift of salvation and all anyone has ever had to do was to receive God’s gift!

As the nation of Israel lives in a world of hate and as they see a world on the verge of total collapse, they will then see Jehovah God, the One they have waited on all their years, returning according to the Scriptures!

Zep 3:14  Sing, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel; be glad and rejoice with all the heart, O daughter of Jerusalem. 
Zep 3:15  The LORD hath taken away thy judgments, he hath cast out thine enemy: the king of Israel, even the LORD, is in the midst of thee: thou shalt not see evil any more. 
Zep 3:16  In that day it shall be said to Jerusalem, Fear thou not: and to Zion, Let not thine hands be slack. 
Zep 3:17  The LORD thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing. 

What had Jesus, the Messiah, preached to the Jews?

Luk 13:34  O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which killest the prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto thee; how often would I have gathered thy children together, as a hen doth gather her brood under her wings, and ye would not! 
Luk 13:35  Behold, your house is left unto you desolate: and verily I say unto you, Ye shall not see me, until the time come when ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord. 

We see that Jesus was actually referring to His return!

*****Isa 25:10  For in this mountain shall the hand of the LORD rest, and Moab shall be trodden down under him, even as straw is trodden down for the dunghill. 
Isa 25:11  And he shall spread forth his hands in the midst of them, as he that swimmeth spreadeth forth his hands to swim: and he shall bring down their pride together with the spoils of their hands. 
Isa 25:12  And the fortress of the high fort of thy walls shall he bring down, lay low, and bring to the ground, even to the dust. 

Moab was founded by the incestuous son of Lot and his own daughter.

What had Moses prophesied?

Num 24:17  I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him, but not nigh: there shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel, and shall smite the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children of Sheth.

Num 24:19  Out of Jacob shall come he that shall have dominion, and shall destroy him that remaineth of the city. 

The fact is, that in this instance, Moab is in fact “a type” of all Satan’s children.

Jer 48:29  We have heard the pride of Moab, (he is exceeding proud) his loftiness, and his arrogancy, and his pride, and the haughtiness of his heart. 
Jer 48:30  I know his wrath, saith the LORD; but it shall not be so; his lies shall not so effect it. 

No doubt “Moab” in “type” also represents all the foes of Israel that remain and all the foes of Israel will be trodden down under the feet of the Messiah.

Mar 12:36  For David himself said by the Holy Ghost, The LORD said to my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, till I make thine enemies thy footstool. 

A dunghill was a heap of compost. The compost pile was increased by the addition of straw, which means the straw was left to rot in the dunghill!

When the Messiah returns, His enemies will be no more than that straw that was trampled into the dunghill and many will be left to just rot.

The truth is, at the return of the Messiah, the enemies of God can no more resist the power of God than water can resist a good swimmer!

Once the enemies of Israel, the enemies of the Church, all these the enemies of the Messiah are removed, there will be no opposition to God left on this earth.

No persecution.
No need for martyrs.
No mocking of God’s people.

Rev 18:6  Reward her even as she rewarded you, and double unto her double according to her works: in the cup which she hath filled fill to her double. 
Rev 18:7  How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow. 
Rev 18:8  Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her.

2Co 10:4  (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) 
2Co 10:5  Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; 
2Co 10:6  And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled. 

God does not ask many things of us!

Mar 12:30  And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. 
Mar 12:31  And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.

2Ti 2:15  Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. 
2Ti 2:16  But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness. 

Heb 10:24  And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: 
Heb 10:25  Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching. 

The basics are; Love God above all else, Love each other, Study the Bible, attend a Bible believing Church, and most important of all “Have Faith”!

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

Questions?

Let’s Pray!