Hello my friends, this page presents a summary outline of the major dispensations in the Old Testament. The goal is to help the reader understand God’s revelation given under the Old Covenant and what it means for our lives from a layman’s perspective. Although we are not under the Old Covenant, it is crucial to understand how the prophecies and promises are being fulfilled under the New Covenant. This question and answer format is striving to stimulate the reader to go deeper into the Scriptures and wrestle with their relationship to the Creator. My paraphrases are based on the New Kings James Version. Of utmost importance is this link where I provide my understanding of how a soul is born again because Jesus said, unless this happens we cannot enter the Kingdom of God: The born again process
From the creation to the flood: 4,000 to 2,343 BC: 1,657 years
The origins of everything
The Bible says God created everything in 6 days culminating in the creation of mankind and rested on the 7th day. I am unsure if these days represent our 24 hour periods but I do believe they were probably short periods of time. Have you ever considered where God got the physical matter to create the earth and other planetary bodies, stars, etc.? Have you ever considered why the atomic particles behave the way they do? Why does the electrons and protons revolve around the nucleus? Why does some of the particles attract each other, magnets, while others repel each other? What makes our earth and other planets revolve around our sun and why do we experience the seasons? What gives the planets and stars their gravitational powers? Obviously, the most profound mystery of all is what engendered our consciousness and makes us aware that we exist? Do you know the mathematical probability of non conscience matter evolving into conscience matter? It’s probably the same change of tossing a bunch of wires and plastic into a room, running an electrical current over this for a billion years, then opening the room to a fully functioning computer.
A personal being is more logical
My friends, when it comes to pondering the origins of everything, we only have two choices, either our universe came from something or it came from nothing, which means it always existed. Apart from believing an intelligent life force existed before the universe, we are left with the universe forming itself, along with us, which makes the universe God. Religious and none religious scientist both agree, our current universe had a beginning. They understand this because we are observing the breakdown of the universe. Common sense tells us that any force, matter or entity, which is breaking down had a beginning and even if it takes a billion years, will have an ending. I definitely believe there was a big bang when our universe began and most certainly will be a big bang when it ends!
I propose a supernatural, all powerful entity outside our physical universe answers many more questions than the theory of random chance, suggested by evolution. If we evolved through species mutating over billions of years, then why is this not supported by the fossil record? Now I agree, the human and animal kingdom are experiencing evolutionary adaptation, but not species mutation! Ask yourself, how can something come from nothing? How can intelligent beings, us, come from less intelligent beings? I am told that our egg and sperm have all the necessary instructions to form a fully functioning human being. My friends, someone or something far superior to humans, created us. In order for us to say there is no God, we would have to be everywhere at the same time or essentially, we would have to be God. For instance, God could be pulling up to our residence now.
Our thoughts and beliefs shape our actions
The most logical and truthful statement anyone can make is I do not believe God exist. A statement that says I do not know if God exist is just confirming what we already know, that is you are not omniscient nor omnipresent. Remember, God could be pulling up to our residence. So logically, we can make a statement such as I do not believe God exist. Now, if I do not believe God exist, I will never act or live as if he does. Can I believe something to be true and it is actually a lie? Yes. However, if I truly believe something is true, in this example the existence of God, then my life will reflect this. If I truly believe the goal is heaven, hell must be avoided at all cost and these states are eternal, then I will live toward this perception.
What am I saying? My friends, when it comes to morality and other deep topics like God, we are all wired to live according to what we perceive to be the truth. Therefore, our lifestyles will ultimately reflect what we truly believe. Now this is also true when it comes to how we perceive ourself and goals we set. For instance, if we are always thinking depressing thoughts, I can never accomplish anything meaningful, my life has no importance so I should just end it or hateful thoughts about people, how do you think this will shape our actions? Therefore, if we decide to think or believe God exist, it will begin to change our lives.
Has God given me enough evidence to believe he exist?
The Bible says in the Gospel of John and the letter to the Colossians that Jesus made everything and yet it says in Genesis that God made the heavens and the earth. Hebrews tells us that we understand by faith that God made everything and used substance that is invisible to us. One mystery under the Old Covenant, which has been revealed in the New Covenant, is God used the Son to create everything. Do you think we will understand most of the mysteries of God on this side, how about just 10%? Am I waiting for God to do something ridiculous before I believe he exist? Am I refusing to believe God exist because I do not like his rules?
Romans says we can understand God based upon the creation and therefore, man is without excuse. Remember, it took man a while to develop a microscope powerful enough to see atomic particles. However, the particles were always here. The most, logical and reasonable explanation of our universe is that God created the heavens and earth, then established the laws of physics to govern them. Personally, I believe whoever says there is no God or Divine Intelligence just does not want to follow the rules. How many rules did God give us in the beginning? Now the evidence that God is giving me, his continuous presence, is overwhelming so I really do not need faith to believe he exist. However, I still need faith to believe the being I am interacting with is the true God of the Bible and all will go well for me when I die. For more insight into how God is revealed in the Bible click on this link. How is God revealed in the Bible?
God’s 7th day rest
Now, what does it mean when the Scripture says God rested on the 7th day? Was God tired? Did not Jesus say my father is working so I must work while we have the day and the time is coming when no man can work. My friends, God does not get tired but I am sure he might get irritated with us falling in and out of sin. The Scripture says, do not grieve the Holy Spirit who is working to bring you back to God and the Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously. Trust me, God is giving everything he has to save us, therefore we must give it everything we have to be saved! God’s rest after the 6 days of creation means he was finished with brining this part of his creation into existence. You can think of this rest as God having brought all the physical matter in the universe necessary for his purpose. Obviously, God is still working to redeem the spiritual aspect of man. Now, once this universe or cosmos is destroyed, God will go to work one final time to bring the substance necessary for the new heaven and earth into existence.
God makes the rules and man has freedom of choice
My friends, without man having freedom of choice or free will, we are left with a God who sentences people to torment, while knowing the soul could not obey him. Remember, Jesus said I have the keys to Death and Hades. The Bible tells us there were many good trees in the garden they were allowed to eat. God gave them one restriction, do not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. God gave them freedom to chose. This freedom to chose between good and evil is with us from our initial confession of sin, repentance and submission to Christ, until we take our last breath. This is our testing period and after we die, those of us who made it, can never again disobey God or sin. Likewise, those of us who did not make it, can never again obey God or live holy.
Love cannot be forced, so we must freely chose to turn from sin and turn toward God. We must feely chose to spend time with the Lord and be more concerned with his agenda than our personal desires in life. God could have created robots that could not disobey him but that would not be genuine love. God also gave freedom of choice to the angels and some of them chose to disobey. I would like to believe he also warned them what would happen if they disobeyed. But like us, the disobedient angels had nothing to compare against the experiences they are having, after disobeying. They only had the words God spoke. For more insight on God’s sovereignty and man’s free will click on this link. God’s Sovereignty vs Man’s free will
God warned of the consequences for disobeying
God gave us the consequence by saying the day that you eat of it, you will surely die. Do you believe Adam and Eve understood what death was? No, they did not understand this because they had never experienced it? Not having experienced it, do you understand what heaven or hell will be like? Now, I have been to heaven and hell twice in dreams or visions, so I have some understanding of both states. However, I cannot say that my understanding is comprehensive because my stay was brief. Also, I cannot say what everyone will experience because just like we are experiencing God differently now, we will have different experiences when we die. The Bible says that we cannot comprehend the things God has prepared for those who love him or heaven. Alternatively, we cannot comprehend the horrors awaiting those who have failed to live for our Lord or hell.
Death is separation from God
The Bible says the soul that sins shall die and since we have all sinned, except Jesus, this means all of us have experienced some aspect of the curse. The Holy Spirit has revealed to me that death is simply separation from God. When God says my word has went out and it will accomplish my will, this also means the curse of death. Yes my friends, just as God created life, he also created death. However, man brought the experience of death upon himself and God knows we had some help from the Serpent. So even if we are physically living but have not been reborn or reconciled to God, the Bible says we are dead in our trespasses and sins. This means we are separated or spiritually dead from God’s perspective. God is Spirit and if our spirits are not alive, we cannot fellowship with him. This is what the Lord meant when he said we must worship in spirit and truth or we must be reborn in the Spirit.
Now those who are being born again are receiving the continuous life of Christ. The reason I say we are being born again is the process is not complete until we arrive in heaven. Our Lord’s blood is continuously atoning for our past sins, so the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit in us is overcoming the curse and giving us eternal life. Since God is an eternal being, the power of the curse cannot be reversed, rather the power of the curse must be overcome. It is my understanding that continuous, unrepentant sin is not being atoned for. This is why the Bible says we must confess our sins and Paul says let everyone who names the name of Christ, depart from iniquity or sin. Also, as long as we are separated from God, we are dead to the good purposes and plans he has for our life. Remember what our Lord said to the man who said I will follow you but first let me go and bury my father. You follow me and let the dead bury their own dead.
The Bible makes it clear, that there are two deaths the soul can experience. The current state of being lost is a form of death or separation from God. This is why we preach for people to become born again, because they are dead. Now, if the soul does not get born again while in the physical body, my understanding is after the physical death of this body, that soul will experience an eternal separation from God or the 2nd death. The Book of Revelation tells us the 2nd death is the lake of fire, which is the final judgment. For the Bible says it has been appointed once for us to die, then the judgment. Will you consider that even though we might be dead, according to the Bible’s definition, we are existing. Is it more logical to believe we will continue to exist in some form, after the final judgment?
Eternal existence makes more sense
My friends, we will be more aware when our spirit leaves the body because the rich man in Luke had all his senses and desperately wanted relief. Paul says now we see through a glass dimly. I understand this to mean that on the other side, we will all have significantly more knowledge. Paul tells us that we are to God the fragrance of Christ, among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing. To the one, we are the aroma of life leading to life and to the other the aroma of death leading to death. I understand this statement means we will continue to be pleasing or displeasing to God forever! We are all becoming more like our God, whether that is the true God, the Lord Jesus Christ or the false god, that fallen angel, Satan.
Remember what our Lord said to the Pharisees, be careful because you are getting close to blaspheming the Holy Spirit, a sin which will not be forgiven in this age or the age to come. This statement indicates there will be an age coming where those wanting forgiveness cannot receive it. If a person goes out of existence, that person no longer wants or needs forgiveness. Furthermore, if people were eventually annihilated, this would be a hollow threat. Remember, our Lord said for that man who is against him, in this passage he was referring to Judas, it would be better if that man was not born. This statement tells you that there is a condition waiting for that person worse than ever having existed. If a person eventually goes out of existence, this statement is not true.
Just as we are existing now and might be in a state of death or separation from God, our consciousness or personality will exist forever. The major difference between existing now in this body and then in another form is that our opportunity for reconciliation is on this side. Remember, the rich man in the Gospel of Luke was repentant or unselfish and only wanted someone to return from the dead to warn his 5 brothers. Our Lord gave the parable about the rich man who said to his soul, you have stored up treasures for many years, soul take your rest. Our Lord said you foul, today your soul will be required! The Bible says today is the day of salvation and if you hear his voice do not harden your heart. This means if you are lost, the grace of God has given you another day to come to your senses. The reason is tomorrow will never come for a lot of us. I remember seeing a statistic that estimated about 155,000 people die everyday. My friends, for everyone of those guys, tomorrow was their judgment day.
Lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, pride of life
How did the serpent tempt the woman? Was it not through the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life, which were the same temptations the Lord faced after his baptism? So, when the woman saw that the tree was good for food (the lust of the flesh), that it was pleasant to the eyes (the lust of the eyes) and a tree desirable to make one wise (the pride of life), she proceeded. Our temptations are the same because the Bible says in Corinthians that no temptation has taken us but what is common to man. When we are tempted, what should we do? Do you remember how the Lord responded to Satan after being tempted? Did not our Lord use the Word of God. My friends, the Bible must be a part of our life to use it when our strongest temptations come. Please click on this link for more insight into the process of testing and tempting. Understanding Testing and Temptation
The prophecy of the Seed of the Woman, the Messiah
God said to the serpent, there is one coming from the seed of the woman who will bruise your head and you will bruise his heel. Now if you remember from your biology course, the woman does not have a seed naturally, so I can see implications of the virgin birth in this statement. When was this prophecy fulfilled? At the cross, Paul tells us that Christ conquered all principalities and rulers or he bruised their heads. We also know at the crucifixion our Lord’s feet were pierced, so they definitely bruised his heels. My friends, through the cross, that is us willing to die to our desires and live for God’s program, we conquer all temptations and the demonic realm.
The Holy Spirit brought to my mind the order in which God cursed all the parties. The serpent was cursed first, woman second, man third, and earth last. The order appears to represent the level of culpability of the parties. Also, it appears the man and woman were reigning as partners but after the fall, there is implications of a power struggle, because the Scripture says the man will rule over the woman. Hold on my friends, because after the destruction of this cosmos or universe, Peter and John states we will receive another one. Remember, the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. In the Revelation, the Lord states, behold I make all things new and John said I saw a new heaven and a new earth. When we read the end of the Book of Revelation, there is only the tree of life. Our testing period ends after this age!
The effects of sin produce shame
After the first sin, they hid themselves and we have been hiding ever since. If you do not have a relationship with God, why do you believe you are hiding from him? You are hiding because you are guilty my friend. The Bible says that once we know God, we run to him so that his light exposes our lives and proves we are living holy. Now, God made them skins to cover them. The Holy Spirit pointed out to me that the priesthood of Melchizedek was established immediately after the first sin. The Bible says Melchizedek was called priest of the most High God in Genesis. How many sins do you think he was interceding for at that time? God is so holy that any sin must always be interceded for. Hebrews tells us Christ is a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek. What does this mean if you are not in Christ? Are you ready for Christ to be your intercessor? When you stand before God, who will plead your case? For the Bible says all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
If we go to court for a serious crime, the judge says do you have counsel or are you in pro per, meaning representing yourself? Anyone who is not extremely knowledgeable in the administration of the judicial system would be foolish not to obtain legal counsel. My wife is a retired lawyer and she would never dream of representing herself. Therefore, us standing before an eternally perfect being who has given us the rules of conduct saying, we are pretty good is hilarious. Remember, our Lord said to the rich young ruler no one is good but one, that is God. Now when the Lord referred to himself as the Good Shepperd in the Gospel of John, who was he claiming to be? My friends, I am so close to the Holy Spirit that I realize without Christ blood and me running from my sin, there is not a snowball change in hell of making it! The Bible says if a righteous man barely makes it, where will the sinner be found?
How a sinful man approaches a Holy God
After the first sin and under the Old Covenant, God prescribed the way to approach him is through animal blood sacrifice. After the cross and under the New Covenant, God prescribes the way to approach him is through Jesus blood sacrifice. This means that we cannot approach God how we want to. For instance, when Cain and Abel approached God through their sacrifices, which one was correct? We know that Abel’s offering was accepted by God and Cain’s was not. God is saying the same thing to us, if we do right will not our sacrifice be accepted? The Bible tells us in Romans to present our bodies a living sacrifice. Jesus also tells us that when you do your good deed, do not do it so man can see you. In other words, do not be a hypocrite. Also, when you fast, do not do it to be seen by people. My friends, how are you trying to approach a Holy God?
The process of sin and help to overcome
Cain did not fall into full blown sin after his initial offering because God said if you do right will not your sacrifice be accepted, but if you do not sin lies at the door. Notice that sin was at the door but not in his life yet. Was Cain in disobedience? Yes, however this act had not led into full blown sin yet. James tells us that when sin is full grown, it brings forth death. If God cuts us off from his Holy Spirit when we first fall into disobedience, nobody makes it. Therefore, when we are tested, we go through a process just as Cain did. Eventually, Cain failed the test, gave in to his jealousy and sinned by killing his brother. Even though the Bible does not mention it, do you think Satan was tempting Cain during this process? What should Cain have done to keep himself from falling into sin? Obviously, Cain should have brought the correct sacrifice. What should we do to keep ourself from falling into sin? Paul says we must submit ourselves as a living sacrifice and renew our mind in the word of God.
Help to overcome sin
The Bible says no temptation has taken us other than what is common to man, but God will not allow us to be tempted more than we can bear but will provide a way of escape so we can bear it. James says when we are tempted, it works with our desires and eventually can lead us into sin, which results in death. Anyone tempting us to commit evil, that includes ourselves, is being influenced by the evil one. Again, the temptation works with our desires and eventually can lead us into sin. Therefore, one of the strongest defenses we have is to allow the Holy Spirit to work Godly desires into our mind. The Bible says to delight yourself in God’s word and he will give us the desires of our heart. My friends, are you spending time in God’s word? Remember, our Lord said that he is the bread of life. Just as we eat physical food, we must eat spiritual food which is God’s word.
Therefore, my friends sin is a process and during that process we can overcome it. At any time, Eve or Cain were being tempted, they could have stopped the process before it became full blown sin. Jesus’s message to the 7 churches in the Revelation is you must overcome sin. We overcome by the blood of the lamb, the word of our testimony and we do not love our lives down here. My friends, are you overcoming sin or is sin still ruling in your life? The Bible says sin shall not have dominion over us. Please click on this link for more insight into overcoming sin. Spiritual Warfare
From the flood to Abraham’s promise: 2,343 to 1,909 BC: 434 years
God warned before the flood judgment
Now wickedness multiplied on earth and the sons of God went into the daughters of men. There are different positions on who the sons of God are, the main thing to consider is this act was extremely wicked and brought horrific judgment. Since God had given mankind the command to be fruitful and multiply, my position is these are fallen angelic beings crossing the boundaries that God established for sexual relations. In the Old Testament, the sons of God are referred to as angels and the sons of men as humans, consistently. The book of Job says one day the sons of God came to present themselves before God and Satan came with them. This passage is clearly referring to the angelic beings which did not disobey the Lord. The fallen angelic beings would not be coming to worship God, which is why Satan did not come to worship but accuse.
God told Noah he was going to destroy the earth and to build a boat to save mankind and the animals. He gave that generation 100 years to get right with him because the Bible says Noah was 500 when he got the warning and the rain came when he was 600. Notice God determined to destroy the earth, man’s only escape was to get on the ark. Just as God gave Noah a warning my friends, God has given me a warning for our time by telling me the person who will be alive when he returns. Our only means of escape is to be in the ark, that is Christ, when the wrath comes down. Now, many did not receive the warnings and perished in the flood. In fact, the Bible says only 8 souls were saved. Do you remember the symbol God gave the earth that he would not destroy it again by water? Do you know what mankind has done with the symbol of the rainbow? How do you think this makes God feel every time he sees his symbol displayed in this ungodly way?
From Abraham’s promise to the exodus: 1,909 to 1,488 BC: 421 years
Abraham’s and our call to follow God
After the flood, Noah lived another 350 years and died at the age of 950. Abraham’s father, Terah lived to be 205 and he lived to be 175. From the flood, approximately 2,343 BC to Abraham’s call around 1,909 BC, we have a period of 434 years. Therefore, prior to the flood, our lifespan was in the 900s and shortly after the flood, over a period of 434 years, man’s lifespan is decreased to the high 100s. Now we know the earth went through unusual environmental changes after the flood so this could account for a shorter life span. It is interesting that God said in the day that you disobey me you will die and no one lived longer than 1,000 years. The Psalmist and Peter said a day is like a 1,000 years and a 1,000 years like a day in his sight. So in one sense, they all died within a day.
God called Abraham out from among his people, told him to go to the promise land and he would establish his covenant with him. The Bible tells us we all have been called out of the world to come and follow the Lord. Are you still a part of this world or have you answered the call of the Lord to deny yourself, pickup your cross and follow him? What does it mean for us to deny ourself, pickup our cross and follow him? Is the Lord asking us not to fulfill the desires of our heart or is he asking us to seek him first and he will give us better desires for our life? Who placed the desires in our heart for relationships, homes, careers, children, vacations, and ultimately to feel significant? When we seek him first, our primary desire becomes to please him, then all the secondary desires of our heart will align with this. Remember, Jesus said seek first the kingdom of God. My friends, are you seeking God and answering the call?
God’s circumcision covenant and promised Messiah
God promised Abraham he would make a great nation from him and through his seed, the whole world would be blessed. Paul tells us in Romans this blessing was coming through Abraham’s Seed, that is Christ. While the ultimate blessing is through Christ, we can be a blessing to someone while allowing the Holy Spirit to work through us. Through Abraham’s promise, we can see further fulfillment of the Genesis seed of the woman prophecy. Our Lord told Peter you have been given the keys to the kingdom and whatever you bind on earth will be bound and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. My friends, we are all called to bind up the broken hearted, set the captives free and move the mountains in peoples lives. Through his power, we are called to become a fisher of men.
Now Abraham was about 100 and Sara was about 90 years old, well past child bearing years when the promise was given. However, Hebrews tells us Abraham did not waiver at the promise but believed God. Now, Abraham and Sarah tried to help the Lord by having a child with Hagar, Sarah’s handmaid. This act was a result of the couple not believing in the supernatural. We must never discount the supernatural experiences God can give us. Also, the Lord told Abraham your descendants would be enslaved for about 400 years in a foreign land and I will bring them out with a strong hand. During the 400 year period, the Lord was dealing with the nations around them, because they had become extremely wicked.
God gave Abraham the command of circumcision to commence this covenant. The Old Covenant of circumcision was in effect until the Lord brought in the New Covenant. Now, we are under the New Covenant because Paul tells us that circumcision or uncircumcision avails nothing but faith exercising itself in love. Also, Hebrews tells us our circumcision is of the heart and not of the flesh, so our praise is from God not man. For more insight into all the major promises and covenants in the Bible please follow this link. The Covenants or Promises of God
Judgment of Sodom and Gomorrah
Around this time, wickedness has increased and the Cities of Sodom and Gomorrah have become exceedingly sinful. Please notice, even though the promises of God are unfolding, God is prepared to judge a portion of the world for its wickedness. My friends, the Bible says in Peter and Jude, God knows how to preserve the righteous and judge the wicked. Please do not let the Lord condemn you for your sins. Hear the story of Sodom and Gomorrah and how Abraham negotiated with the Lord saying surely the judge of all the earth will do right.
Abraham negotiated from 50 down to 10 righteous people to spare the whole city. In fact, there were not even 5. The Lord told us in the gospels that when he is about to judge the earth, that it will be like the days of Lot and to remember Lot’s wife. In one respect, people were marrying and given in marriage, however in another, the city was so vile that the wrath of God was being unleased. What can we say about Lot’s wife? Lot’s wife looked back because her heart was still in Sodom. Is your heart still in this wicked world? Remember the Lord says, wherever your treasure is, there will your heart be. My friends, is our treasure in this world or the world to come?
Immediately before the fire and brimstone was rained down, the angels said flee for your life and do not look back. This is the message I am giving the world, flee from the wrath to come for it will be here in my sister Deborah’s lifetime. Lot’s wife looked back, was immediately judged by God and turned into a pillar of salt. Jesus says no one is fit for the kingdom who puts his hands to the plow and looks back. This is a picture of someone who says they are a Christian but their heart is still in the world. James says a double minded man is unstable in all his ways. Do not let that man think he will receive anything from the Lord. The message to the Church of Laodicea is if you are lukewarm, I will vomit you out of my mouth.
Evil company can corrupt us
Let’s examine how living among the people of Sodom impacted Lot, a righteous man, his wife and their daughters. Lot was able to show hospitality to the two men that came to Sodom because he pleaded with them to spend the night at his place. At this point, Lot did not know the men were angels but was just being kind. Hebrews tells us to be careful how we treat strangers because they might be angelic. My friends, do we have a difficult time just showing strangers love and kindness?
Now Lot was dwelling in the gate of the city so he was fully aware of the practices, which is why he pleaded with the men not to rape the strangers. Lot’s standard of morality was poor because he offered his two virgin daughters, in place of the strangers. In addition to scaring his daughters for life, they had husbands or were considered married, so this would have devastated their husbands. The men of Sodom did not want the women but only wanted the men, so Lot, his wife and two daughters fled the city. Because the city had influenced Lot’s wife greatly, she disobeyed the Lord and was destroyed. My friends, is the world influencing us to a point where we are continuing to disobey God?
After the escape, Lot’s moral compass continued to be impacted because he allowed his two daughters to get him into a drunken state and ended up getting them pregnant. This act also speaks of the wicked influence Sodom had on his daughters where they did not trust the Lord but tricked their father. Now the Bible says he was unaware when they laid down and rose up, so this was definitely not consensual.
The Bible says from this union came the people of Moab and Ammon. The Moabites and Ammonites were a thorn in the side of the Israelites. My friends, if we think we can hang out with corrupt people of this world and not get lead astray then we are deceiving ourselves. For the Bible says, what fellowship does light have with darkness? Now I am not saying you cannot have friends who are in the world because our Lord ate with sinners. What I am saying is while we are influencing them to live holy, we must be careful not to adopt their sinful practices.
Abraham’s test
The Lord fulfilled his promise and Abraham had Isaac. Afterward, the Lord told Abraham to take your son, your only son, whom you love and offer him as a burnt offering to me. I would have said, now wait a minute Lord, you just said that out of this boy there are going to come kings and descendants as numerable as the stars! How can this happen if he is killed? If you know the story, God stopped him and provided a ram caught in the thicket instead of his son. Some scholars say this mountain is the same place where the Lord was eventually sacrificed. The point is we, like Abraham, must be obedient to God’s prompting and trust that he has a plan.
God says in the Book of Revelation there is great tribulation to come and he specifically ensures the church of Philadelphia that through obedience, he would keep the church from the test. Does this mean Jesus will keep the church from being tested or keep them from falling the test? I believe that a great test to come in our time is whether to receive a mark described in Revelation 13. Now when God says do not receive a mark on your right hand or forehead in order to buy or sell, you might say Lord this is just technology and the way we conduct business now. You may not fully understand this demand of God, as I am sure Abraham was equally bewildered, but will you trust him. When this demand comes upon our world, will we follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit?
Obedience displayed through sacrifice is the very example of Christ. Remember when our Lord was in the garden, he said Father if there is any other way let this cup pass from me. Nevertheless, not my will but your will be done. What are you willing to sacrifice to get closer to the Lord? How about some time each day in reading or prayer before the Lord. How about taking some of your money and supporting a worthy cause. How about trying to tell someone about Jesus? My friends, are we passing the test today?
Jacob’s life
What can we learn from the life of Jacob? As a young man, Jacob valued the birthright given to the oldest son, but extorted this from his brother for a bowl of soup. Jacob, with the help of his mother Rebekah, deceived his father Isaac and stole his brother’s blessing. While fleeing Esau, Jacob encounters God in Bethel and says God if you will bless me with material things, then you shall be my God. Jacob served Laban 7 years for Leah but thought it was for Rachel, then served another 7 years for Rachel. Jacob was mistreated by Laban, God told him to flee and protected him from Laban.
While returning home, Jacob was afraid Esau was going to harm him and wrestled with a man all night, refusing to release the man until he was blessed. During this incident, God touched his hip, throwing it out of the socket and changed his name to Israel. Jacob returned home, bowed down to Esau and Esau fellow on his neck, kissed him and wept. Jacob returned to Bethel, told his household to put away their foreign gods, purify themselves and change their garments. Jacob played favorites by loving Joseph more than his brothers. After a while, Jacob travels to Egypt for sustenance during the famine and blesses Pharaoh. Ultimately, Jacob claims Joseph’s sons Ephraim and Manasseh as his own, gives a farewell prophecy to his sons and dies at the age of 147.
My friends, we can see that Jacob started life as a deceiver and manipulator. No doubt, he learned this from his mother. Jacob was willing to work hard for what he wanted, thus serving Laban for all those years. At this point in his life, I see no indication that Jacob served the true God. I see the turning point in his life after the incident where he wrestled with the Man, who I believe was the Lord Jesus. My friends, we can know about God or our Lord Jesus but that does not mean we are serving him. However, we see Jacob’s persistence paid off because he got the blessing, which also cost him a limp. Just like the woman with the issue of blood for 12 years, at times we must press into the Lord for a blessing. However, even after this we see Jacob played favorites, thus contributing to the way Joseph was treated by his brothers. However, in the end, Jacob finished in God and blessed those around him. So like Jacob, even if we start life in the flesh, will we finish in Christ?
Joseph’s test and prophecy fulfilled
Again, Jacob and his 12 sons were born and the Lord changed Jacob’s name to Israel. From the 12 sons arose the 12 tribes of Israel. Now, because of Jacob’s favoritism and Joseph’s dreams, the brothers sold their youngest brother Joseph into slavery and he was taken down to Egypt. Joseph was wrongfully accused and languished for 2 years in a prison but the Bible says God was with him during this trial. Then, through a series of dreams, Joseph rose to 2nd in command of Egypt and just as his dream predicted, his brothers came and bowed down to him. Even though Pharoah was greater, he said no one will move anything without Joseph’s command. During the difficult periods of Joseph’s life, he probably wondered if God had abandoned him but he remained faithful. Jesus says, when the Son of Man returns, will he find faith on the earth? During our trials, will we lose faith?
God told Abraham his descendants would be strangers and they would be oppressed for 400 years and this is exactly what happened. Afterward, he would judge that nation, bring them out with a strong hand and give them the promise land. Remember when the prophecy came, God determined that it would take about 400 years before the Amorites iniquity or sin was complete. My friends, God knows how much sin he will tolerate from our lives before he sends judgment. Do not let God’s patience run out on you. He was so patience with this little man and the Bible say’s God is long suffering, not willing that any should perish but all to come to repentance. The Bible says that Joseph and all those generations died and a Pharoah arose who did not know Joseph.
From exodus to the promise land: 1,488 to 1,448 BC: 40 years
Moses’ birth and call
So, Moses was born in the midst of turmoil because the Pharaoh had given an order to kill all the male children. No doubt, Herod repeated this command during his time. The Pharaoh was in fear because the Israelites were multiplying too fast, remember God’s promise. God protected Moses and he grew up in the palace of the King. When Moses was 40 years old, he killed an Egyptian who was beating his brethren and then fled into the wilderness. God spoke to Moses through the burning bush and gave him the task of leading the Israelites out of bondage. Now, when Moses asked God what his name was, he said that I am that I am. Interestingly, the Lord Jesus claimed these same words when disputing with the scribes and they picked up stones to kill him. The scribes knew exactly who the Lord was claiming to be. My friends, do you know who the Lord is claiming to be?
Did Moses encounter great difficulty when trying to carry out God’s plan? Do you think it is going to be easy to live the Christian life? Jesus said strive to enter the narrow gate because many will try and not be able. Pharaoh and his kingdom are a picture of Satan and Sin and their rule over our lives until we are born again. Do you think they are going to give up their rule over our life without a fight? Do you remember what God said to Cain about sin? My friends, it is the same thing God is saying to us, sin wants to rule over us, but we must rule over it. The question then becomes are we ruling over our sin or are we continually submitting to it? As we die to the desires of this fallen world, sin becomes less and less appealing.
The 10 Plagues
Now demonic activity was pervasive during this time because Pharaoh’s magicians were able to duplicate some of the signs and plagues given by God. Remember, every man’s staff turned to a serpent. During Mankind/Satan’s last kingdom, the Bible says the False Prophet, under authority from the Man of Sin or Antichrist, will be able to perform great signs and wonders even calling fire down from heaven in the sight of men. Paul said around the time of the Man of Sin’s reign, God will send them a strong delusion that they might believe the lie and that all should be damned who have pleasure in unrighteousness. My friends, what are some of the lies the world is telling us? The lie could be that I can live how I want and God forgives me anyway, because I am saved by faith not works. Perhaps the lie that Satan told Eve, you can disobey God and you are not going to die. How about only the really bad people like Hitler go to hell. Jesus says that immediately before he returns, deception will be so great that if it were possible, the very elect shall be deceived. No doubt, Satan deceived the magicians and Pharaoh causing their hearts to harden, so God had Moses implement the plagues.
The 1st Plague: Water becomes blood
The Lord had Moses say to Pharaoh, the Lord God of the Hebrews commands you to let my people go or I will turn the waters in Egypt to blood, the fish will die and the rivers will stink. Since the Egyptians were big worshippers of the Nile and other rivers, God directed this plague at one of their greatest gods. Also, notice how God gave Pharaoh a warning before sending this plague. My friends, God will always warn us because he wants us to comply before he takes action. Now Pharaoh refused and God struck the rivers for 7 days and they became blood. Also, the Bible says the magicians of Egypt were able to duplicate this miracle with their enchantments. Never forget my friends, Satan is also supernatural and can perform some miracles. After God performed this miracle in the sight of Pharaoh, his heart was not moved. This is why God tells us to confess our sins, believe in the facts of the Bible and change our lives, not to wait on him to do some miracle. My friends, even if God did a miracle for some people, do you think they would then live for him? I see these regional plagues duplicated on a global scale during the Apocalypse when the 2nd and 3rd bowls are poured out.
The 2nd Plague: Frogs
The Bible does not say but I assume the rivers have returned to their natural state by the time this plague is sent. The Lord God sent this frog plague and the magicians did so with their enchantments. The Egyptians worshipped many gods, so this frog plague may have been God’s way of saying the god you are worshipping is attacking you. Now, this is the 1st time that Pharaoh said, please have your God remove the frogs and I will let your people go so they can sacrifice to the Lord. Moses interceded for Pharaoh and God killed the frogs, they gathered them together and I assume burned them. However, once the plague was removed, Pharaoh went back on his word and hardened his heart. Again my friends, how many times have we made a commitment to God and did not follow through?
The 3rd Plague: Lice
Once we get to this 3rd lice plague, the Bible says the magicians used their enchantments to bring lice but could not. The magicians said to Pharaoh this is the finger of God! However, Pharaoh’s heart grew hard and he would not let the people go. My friends, this is why the Bible says today is the day of salvation. The reason is the more we reject God, the harder our heart grows toward him.
The 4th Plague: Flies
Once we get to the 4th plague, God releases flies upon Egypt. Then God said I will set apart the land of Goshen that no flies shall be there and I will make a difference between my people and your people. My friends, at times God provides protection for the righteous but not for the wicked. The Bible says when the 5th trumpet was blown, those not sealed by the Holy Spirit will be tormented by the locust. Once the flies came, Pharaoh cried out for Moses to intercede to have them removed and promised he would let the people go, but said they could not go very far. Moses then said, do not let Pharaoh deal deceitfully anymore but he must honor his word. However, after Moses interceded and God removed the flies, Pharaoh hardened his heart and would not let the people go.
The 5th Plague: Livestock
The 5th plague is released upon the livestock of the Egyptians but all the Hebrew’s livestock was protected. This was a major blow to these agricultural societies. Without livestock, milk, cheese, meats and other products disappears, most farming is halted and many people starve. After the plague, Pharaoh verified that all his livestock was dead but now of the livestock belonging to the Israelites. At time point, Pharaoh clearly knows the God of Moses is somehow sending these plagues against his people while protecting the Israelites. However, he continues in rebellion.
The 6th Plague: Boils
God commanded Moses to take handfuls of ashes from a furnace and scatter it toward the heavens in the sight of Pharaoh. Afterward, God caused boils and sores to breakout on man and beast throughout the land of Egypt. Now, the magicians could not stand before Moses because the boils were on them. My friends, I can only imagine how painful this was, now the Bible says the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh. After Pharaoh has lied and refused to comply during the 1st 5 plagues, I believe God will not allow him to comply until we get to the final plague. Also, I see this plague similar to the 1st bowl judgment against those who have received the Mark of the Beast.
The 7th Plague: Hail
This plague brought tremendous fear to the heart of man. The region was hit with loud thunder and heavy hail mingled with fire, like never seen before. Everyone in the field, man or beast would be killed by the plague. However, the Bible says that those of Pharaoh’s servants who feared the Lord ran to their homes, but those who did not regard the word of the Lord remained in the field. My friends, we can see that even during the tribulation period, which I believe we are in, the Lord is giving warnings. Our God is long suffering and wants every man to come to repentance. Again, the land of Goshen experienced no hail. Then Pharaoh called for Moses and said I have sinned this time, the Lord is righteousness and we are wicked. Please entreat the Lord to remove the thundering and hail for it is enough and I will let you go. So Moses left the presence of Pharaoh, spread out his hand to the Lord and the thunder and hail ceased. However, when Pharaoh saw the plague had ceased, he sinned yet more and hardened his heart. I see this plague similar to the ones released during the 7th trumpet and 7th bowl judgments.
The 8th Plague: Locusts
Now after the devastating hail plague has destroyed most of the crops, the locust are coming behind to finish them off. Pharaoh’s servants said to him, how long shall this man torment us, can you not see that Egypt is destroyed? Pharaoh then said I will let you go but the Lord better be with you and your little ones, lest evil is ahead of you, then he drove them out of his presence! In other words, Moses I am probably coming after you and Israel. At this point, we can see that Pharaoh is planning on killing them after he lets them go. During this plague, Pharaoh called them and said, I have sinned against the Lord your God and you, therefore please forgive my sin this once and have your God take away this death. God responded to Moses and caused a strong wind to remove the locust, yet the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart again. My friends, confessing our sins and not turning from them is not true repentance. Now, I do not see this locust plague as the same locust plague released when the 5th trumpet sounds. I see these as literal insects and the later has evil spirits.
The 9th Plague: Darkness
Now when God turned the sun into darkness, I believe he was also saying I am demonstrating I have power over your most powerful Egyptian god, the sun god Ra. This plague brought 3 days of darkness over the land of Egypt, yet the region of Goshen had light. This does not appear to be a normal eclipse of the sun because Goshen would not have had light. In fact, it was so dark that the text says it could be felt and no one was able to rise and perform functions. I remember, when the Lord took me down to hell it was so dark that I could not see my hand in front of my face. Pharaoh called for Moses and said, go to serve your God but let your flocks and herds be kept back. Moses said no, everything is going because we do not know what the Lord will require for his sacrifice. Pharaoh gets angry and says get away from me and the next time I see your face you shall die! Moses, said so be it. My friends, when we are in the will of God, it does not matter who says what to us.
The 10th Plague: Death of the firstborn
Before God brought this plague, he tells Moses after it Pharaoh will let them go. God institutes the festivals of the Feast of Unleavened Bread and Passover. They did not use yeast so the bread would rise fast and taste bitter. This festival reminded them of the bitter savery in Egypt and how fast God delivered them after 400 years. The Bible does not say but it appears all 10 plagues happened within a few months. God required them to kill a male lamb within 1 year old without blemish, take some of its blood and put it on the 2 doorposts and on the lintel of the house. They were required to roast the lamb in fire, eat it and burn whatever is left over. They were required to eat it with a belt on their waist, sandals on their feet and staff in hand. The annual festival of Passover reminded them of how God spared them through the blood sacrifice of the lamb. God said I will pass through the land of Egypt and kill everyone not under the blood, both man and beast, thus executing judgment against all the gods of Egypt.
I believe most of the gods of Egypt required human sacrifice to prosper their worshippers. The true God never requires human sacrifice to gain the favor of his followers. I believe the closest God came to this was when he tested Abraham with Isaac. My friends, if a modern day ritual requires human or animal sacrifice, you know it is not from the true God. Now we know Father God required this from our Lord Jesus, because the Lord said no one takes my life. In other words, the Lord is saying the Father requires this so I am lying my life down for the sheep. Just like the Israelites were required to apply the lambs blood over their house, when we face God’s wrath, the Lord’s blood must be applied to our life. God specifically warned them not to go out of the house until morning. My friends, what do you think would have happened to the Israelites who did not follow these instructions? What do you think is going to happen to people facing God’s wrath without the Lamb’s blood over their life?
Then Pharaoh rose in the night and there was a great cry in Egypt for there was death in every house. He called Moses and Aaron by night and said go out from among us, you and all your children, take your flocks and herds and bless me also. Now, the Egyptians urged the people to get out of the land in haste for they said we shall all be dead! Also, God told them to ask for certain things which would later be used in the tabernacle. However, some of it was used to create the golden calf. My friends, when God gives us material things, we can use it for his glory or on our flesh. Immediately after this plague, I do not believe Pharaoh was ready to charge after them because he knew Moses God was more powerful. However, after a brief grief phase, pride and anger sets in and he charges out to destroy them. My friends, this is why the Lord tells us to always pray for our enemies because it will keep us from hating them or doing something reckless. The Bible tells us that Moses parted the Red Sea for the Israelites to cross and Pharaoh’s armies came charging after them, but drowned in the sea.
More instruction on how to approach God
During the Israelites 40 year wilderness experience, the Lord gave the moral laws or the 10 commandments, ceremonial laws, dietary laws, behavioral laws, medical prescriptions and the sentence for breaking every law. For the Bible says those who rejected Moses’ law died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. These laws were added to the law of circumcision to make up the Torah. God gave the instructions on how to build the tabernacle, which contained the Ark of the Covenant and instituted certain festivals. For a review of the major feast established by God follow this link. The Major Feast of the Bible
Love God with all your heart, soul, mind & strength
The 1st Commandment
I am the Lord your God, you shall have no other gods before me. During this time in man’s history, they had many Egyptian gods. Since Egypt was the reining kingdom on earth, the Pharoah’s believed their gods were the most powerful. Remember, when every man threw down its’ staff it became a serpent, so demonic spirits were manifesting in a number of ways. Now when God rescued them from bondage he demonstrated that the God of Israel was more powerful than the Egyptian gods.
The 2nd Commandment
You shall make no carved image of any likeness in heaven above or earth beneath or in the water. You shall not bow down to them for I am a jealous God visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the 3rd and 4th generations of those who hate me. And showing mercy to thousands who love me and keep my commandments. My friends, we must always be careful when displaying crosses, statutes, painting and other images because some people may attach the wrong level of importance to the image. Also, the visiting of punishment and showing mercy through generations just means we must teach our children and others God’s rules. God is not going to hold us accountable for our parents sins. However, being raised in an ungodly household and never taught the Bible will negatively impact us.
The 3rd Commandment
You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain. I believe what God is saying is whenever we try to call upon God and our spirit has not been born again, it is in vain. Remember, our Lord said those who worship God must worship in spirit and truth. Again, those who are praying or trying to interact with God and their spirit has not be born again is doing so in vain. Now, those who say Jesus Christ or O my God rather than profanity is definitely using the Creator’s name in vain, so if this is part of your vocabulary please stop this.
The 4th Commandment
Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. You nor your cattle shall work on this day. For in 6 days the Lord made the heavens and earth and rested on the 7th day and hallowed it. Hebrews tells us this commandment is observed as a way of life, rather than day of the week under the New Covenant. Paul said let no one judge you regarding specific days or Sabbaths which are a shadow of Christ. In other words, we are resting upon the blood of Christ as the only payment for our sin debt. However, God is not opposed to someone observing any specific day of the week, provided they understand salvation is not obtained by keeping one day more holy than the other.
Love your neighbor as yourself
The 5th Commandment
Honor your father and mother that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord your God is giving you. This verse mandated care for our elderly. In addition to caring for our elderly family members, we should try and care for those who cannot care for themselves. Now, this does not mean we do not use wisdom when serving the poor. The Pharisees had created traditions that allowed them to circumvent this commandment and the Lord rebuked them.
The 6th Commandment
You shall not murder. The Lord expanded on this commandment by saying if you hate someone without a cause you have murdered them in your heart. Our Lord wants us to understand that God is not just concerned with outward actions but also with inward thoughts. My friends, we cannot let bitterness, revenge and unforgiveness live in our heart.
The 7th Commandment
You shall not commit adultery. The Lord expanded on this commandment by saying if you look upon a woman with lust you have already committed adultery with her in your heart. This is why the Lord said if your eye offends you pluck it out or if your hands offend you cut them off. My friends, there is absolutely no way of achieving sexual purity without being born again. Therefore, anyone trying to obey God’s rules without the power of the Holy Spirit is going down!
The 8th Commandment
You shall not steal. My friends, there are a lot of ways we can cheat and steal. Some of the most common practices in the Old Testament was the use of unfair scales, usuary or over taxation. In modern times, we should always try to give more than we receive, be open and honest and strive to develop win win contracts. A contract where I win mostly and you only win a little is probably not going to glorify God.
The 9th Commandment
You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. Our Lord said that all liars will have their part in the lake of fire. Now lying also includes purposely trying to deceive someone. However lying may not include choosing not to reveal some information that is not harmful to a person. If we are asked a question and do not want to lie, just say I cannot provide that information to you. If you are unsure whether this commandment is being broken, go to the Lord. Remember, God demands holiness so he will always let us know how to proceed.
The 10th Commandment
You shall not covet your neighbor’s house, wife, male servant, female servant, ox, donkey nor anything that is your neighbors. This is definitely a call for us to examine our heart. This commandment requires us to ensure we are not living a jealous, envious life. If this level of envy is within us then the grass is always going to appear greener on the other side. Remember what our Lord said to the woman at the well and our lives are much greater than possessions. Paul said for we brought nothing in this world and it is certain we can take nothing out. My friends, if we are coveting things down here, we are not going to make it to glory.
Punishment for breaking God’s rules
The books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy outline the punishment for breaking God’s rules. My friends, we were created by an eternally righteous All Powerful Being that demanded the death penalty for many crimes. Even when the crime did not engender the death penalty, he demanded an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. Paul tells us that God’s law was not the problem because it was good, perfectly reflecting God’s character. Never forget, God is not going to reduce his standards for the angels or man. So when man disobeyed the rules under the Old Covenant and the crime did not rise to the death penalty, there was protocol to receive forgiveness.
Now, we are under the New Covenant and our Lord has fulfilled the righteous requirements of the law. Remember, our Lord said I have not come to abolish the law but to fulfill. Since our Lord never sinned or broke God’s rules, his death serves as payment for all our past and present sins, provided we repent. However, under the New Covenant, the breaking of God’s rules could still require the death penalty within a given society. While I definitely believe the death penalty is justified, implementation of the death penalty under man’s system can be unfair at times because some of us can afford powerful attorneys while some must go with Public Defenders. However, just like the Old Covenant had protocols to follow before God, so does the New One. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. My friends, this verse is not talking about confessing to a Priest or Pastor. This is us on our knees doing the hard work before the Lord.
Again, we are no longer required to observe the ceremonial, behavioral, dietary, clothing, medical prescriptions, nor carry out the punishment under the Old Covenant. In fact, if we continue to observe these laws, it is an offense to God. Some Jews do not believe Jesus was the Messiah are continuing to observe these laws. They are busy trying to rebuild the 3rd temple and are still waiting on the Messiah. My understanding of end times is God will use the Man of Sin or Antichrist to discipline them and through this process, he will reveal Christ to them or remove their blindness. Every requirement of the Old as well as New Covenant is fulfilled when we deny ourself, pickup our cross and follow the Messiah, the Lord Jesus. Basically, we follow the Lord’s command to sacrifice for God at the greatest level and love our neighbor as ourself. Now even though the laws received under the Old Covenant are no longer required, the 10 commandments, except observing the Sabbath on a particular day, are still in force.
Israel’s wilderness experience and ours
When we examine how God interacted with the generation that came out of Egypt, we can learn from this. Hebrews tells us God was not pleased with that generation and swore in his wrath they would not enter his rest. This is telling us that as we journey through this life, do not continue to look back to Egypt or our old, sinful lifestyle. Philippians tells us we must press forward to the prize and answer the high call to glory from our Lord. Will God’s patience run out on us if we continue to live in sin?
When the Lord rained down manna from heaven, notice he gave them just enough for each day and enough for two days at the end of the week. The double portion at the end of the week was so they would not work on the Sabbath. Jesus said I am the bread of life which comes down from heaven, he who feeds on me will never die. My friends, just how the children of Israel fed on the physical manner daily, we must feed on the Bible, this keeps God’s rules and promises on our mind at all times. Remember, the Psalmist said I have hid your word in my heart that I may not sin against you. Depending on what season our life is in, some of us must fed more. However, even if we are not facing a tough trial, our Lord wants us to hang out with him as often as possible.
Conquering the giants and mountains in our lives
You know if the Lord has been calling you for a long time to come out of the world and live for him. Many of that generation did not enter the physical promise land or the eternal rest of the Lord. I believe only the children of those who disobeyed as well as Joshua and Caleb made it in, because when the Lord sent out the 10 spies only 2 came back with a good report. The others said the land is filled with giants and we cannot overcome them. In fact, we looked like grasshoppers in their sight.
What giants or mountains are in our lives preventing us from entering the promise land? The Lord said if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, get up and be thrown in the sea. As someone experiencing the physical presence of the Holy Spirit, I assure you it is not the size of our faith but the consistency of our faith. Now, was the Lord talking about a giant rock or the mountain of challenges in our lives? What are some of the mountains in our lives?
We all have sins and challenges which must be overcome. Some challenges are not sins, but every challenge must be overcome for us to continue to advance in Christ. For some it might be atheism, false religion, procrastination, sexual immorality, drug addictions, alcohol, pride, false humility, worry, greed, materialism, unforgiveness, depression, poverty, obesity, loneliness, etc. When we come boldly before his throne, the Holy Spirit is here to help us overcome the giants and move those mountains in our lives. My friends, are we conquering the giants or bowing to them? Please follow this link to understand how to overcome. Spiritual Warfare
Joshua to Samuel: 1,448 to 1,113 BC: 335 years
Specific instruction to conquer Jericho
Now the Lord gave Joshua specific rules to conquer Jericho. March around the city one time each day for 7 days and around the city 7 times on the final day and then have the priest blow the trumpets and let out a great shout. Now, what do you think Joshua thought about these instructions? Perhaps during the Israelites march, God was giving the people of Jericho time to surrender. I can also see the number 7 representing the complete judgment against Jericho. We know the harlot Rehab decided to help the spies and surrender to the Israelites God. My friends, the Lord has given us specific instructions on how to overcome. Revelation tells us that we overcome by the blood of the lamb, the word of our testimony and we do not love our lives or this fallen world. Ephesians also tells us that we must put on the whole armor of God in order to stand in the evil day. Is the evil day upon us?
The Judges: Double minded generations
Now after they entered the promise land, the people begin to worship false gods and disobey the rules. The people would fall into rebellion and the Lord would allow other nations to oppress them. After the people would cry out, the Bible says God’s soul could no longer endure the misery of Israel, so he sent them judges and prophets to bring them back into a proper relationship. God used many judges like Deborah, Gideon and Jephthah. Some of the judges had sins in their lives, but like Samson in the end, they found repentance.
The tribe of Dan’s wickedness
The Bible says during those days there was no king. However, do not believe the tribes were not left with an understanding of how to worship the true God. Remember, each tribe had appointed elders. An act of extreme disobedience was practiced by the tribe of Dan. A man name Micah started another priest line after creating a craved image. Members of the tribe of Dan adopted this perverted practice and appointed members of the tribe of Manasseh as priest. No doubt, this continuous act of rebellion contributed to their captivity. My friends, this is why we must understand how to worship the true God.
The tribe of Benjamin’s wickedness
The Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah during the lifetime of Abraham, who lived around 2,000 B.C. The same perverted act of homosexuality practiced back then was in full force approximately 740 years later. The Lord told Abraham your descendants would be enslaved for 400 years, they wandered in the dessert for 40 years, and at the time of this incident, they had been in the promised land for over 300 years. Since the men of Gibeah could not rape the man, they chose to rape the Levite’s concubine, to death. The Lord used the other tribes to judge this wicked act from the tribe of Benjamin. Again, if we continue in sin, will our end be any different from this wicked tribe?
The time of the judges lasted for about 430 years until the first king. How often have we gone back and forth between committing to the Lord and falling back into the same old sins? Do you know how to repent my friend and throw yourself on the mercy of God? The Bible says if we hear his voice today, not to harden our hearts like they did in the rebellion. A hard heart is going to blame others and even God for their sin and not cry out to the Holy Spirit for strength to overcome it. The Bible says both Peter and Judas sinned against the Lord, one cried out to the Lord and one hung himself.
The united kingdom: 1,113 to 1,045: 68 years.
God’s continuing patience
After the period of the judges, we enter the time of the kings. We can learn a lot from studying the life of King Saul, David and Solomon. God used the prophet Samuel to anoint Saul and then David. The Bible says David was a man after God’s heart. You might say wait a minute, David fornicated with his loyal servants wife, got her pregnant, had the guy murdered, then stole his wife! Yes, that’s true. However, if you study the books of Samuel, Kings and the Psalms, David always knew how to repent and throw himself on the mercy of God. My friends, if we fall into sin will we do the same?
King Saul
The people rejected God as king over them and wanted a man like all the other nations. Now Samuel tried to get them to understand that God was their king and an earthly king would abuse them. However, the people told Samuel that you do not have a successor because your children are corrupt. I believe they were saying Samuel, after you are dead, who will give us specific instructions from God? God finally told Samuel the people have not rejected him, but God from being their king. My friends, do we understand that when we reject God’s authority over our life, we are left with man or Satan?
Now did Saul express wisdom and humility during the early years of his life? For sure, I recall the incident where Saul searched for the lost donkey, he was obedient to the demands requested of him. Saul started strong and God stamped his approval on his kingdom. However, once Saul decided to disobey God, the Bible said the Spirit of God departed from him and an evil spirit tormented him. After Samuel died, Saul was so desperate to hear from God that he sought the services of a witch. God allowed Samuel to be raised up and Samuel pronounced Saul’s death. In the end, Saul ended up falling on his sword in battle. My friends, if we continue to disobey the Lord, will our end be any different?
King David
When David was a young lad, God told Samuel to anoint him as king over Israel. My friends, I believe it was approximately 20 years from the time of this anointing until David finally begin to reign. We must always remember, God’s timing is not ours. As a young lad, David was called into service before the king and was able to provide some relief to Saul by playing soothing music. Also, David established himself as a warrior by defeating Goliath and leading the Israelite army into battle. In fact, David’s fame surpassed Saul’s because the people begin to say Saul has killed his 1,000s and David his 10,000s.
Now, in addition to the demonic presence in Saul’s life, extreme jealousy sets in and he tries to kill David for many years. However, David remained humble and spared Saul’s life on a number of occasions. Once Saul died, David’s reign was established and he decided to build a house for the Lord. However, God told the prophet Nathan that David had spilled to much blood, so his son, Solomon would build the house. Now David gave us many wonderful Psalms and he finished strong in the Lord. However, due to David’s sins, the Lord said the sword did not depart from his house. My friends, even after we repent and God accepts it, the consequences of some sins will haunt us until we die.
King Solomon
Solomon was the 3rd king over the nation of Israel. The Bible says King Solomon surpassed all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom, exceeding all the wisdom of the men of the east and Egypt. The Bible says he spoke 3,000 proverbs and wrote 1,005 songs. Remember the story where the King called for a sword to divide the baby between the 2 women who claimed the child. No doubt, his wisdom was divinely given by the Lord. The King’s provisions for one day was approximately 1,800 gallons of fine flour, 10 fatted oxen, 20 oxen from the pastures, 100 sheep, besides deer, gazelles, roebucks and fatted fowl. He possessed 40,000 stalls for his chariots and 12,000 horsemen. Perhaps his greatest accomplishment was he got to build the 1st permanent temple. Unfortunately, Solomon had 700 wives and 300 concubines and they turned his heart from the Lord. Due to this level of idolatry, the Lord split the Kingdom after his reign and only left David’s line authority over the tribe of Judah. However, we can still learn from his writings.
The spilt of the kingdom prior to exiles: 1,045 to 603 BC: 442 years
After King Solomon’s sin, the kingdom was split into the 10 northern tribes called Israel and southern tribe called Judah. As the wickedness of both kingdoms progressed, God sent them prophet after prophet to warn them of the day of the Lord or judgment. One notable prophet was Elijah whom we read about in the Book of Kings. He prophesied during the wicked Queen Jezebel. In the Book of Revelation, the Lord wrote to the Church in Thyatira and said he gave her time to repent but she did not. My friends, the Lord will give us time to repent of our wickedness but do not presume his grace will tarry with us until we get older. For James says what is our life but a vapor, which is here today and can be gone tomorrow.
I remember hearing a statistic that some 155,000 people die every day. Death is no respecter of people and I assure you hell is real because I have been down there twice. Now Elijah and his successor Elisha tried to get the kingdoms back on track. One instance was when Elijah challenged about 400 prophets of Baal to a showdown. Elijah said let’s build an altar and the God that answers by fire is the true God. The result was that the God of Israel answered by fire and the false prophets of Baal were defeated. Now my friends, the power to call down fire from heaven was reserved for true prophets of God back then, but at the time of the Revelation, the Lord will give the False Prophet this ability. This is why in these last days the Lord said false prophets will rise up and show great signs and wonders trying to deceive folks.
The Poetic books deliver wisdom and comfort
When we examine the books of Job, Psalm, Proverb and Ecclesiastes, we see a theme running through them. There is a difference between the righteous and wicked, do not follow the path of the wicked, God sees everything, repent if necessary and patiently continue to trust in the Lord. Ultimately, the Creator rewards the righteous and condemns the wicked.
The Book of Job
When we study the Book of Job, what can we learn from his life? The first thing is that Job was blameless and upright, feared God and shunned evil. Yes, Job was not practicing sin, so we know it’s possible for us to live this way. Paul told Timothy to let everyone who names the name of Christ, depart from sin. Currently, we see Satan has access to God’s throne because he freely came with the other sons of God. Now, we know he did not come to worship but to fight against God. In Revelation 12, we see where this access is no longer allowed.
Satan’s desire is to destory us
Satan wanted to inflict Job and cause him to sin by cursing God. However, due to God’s protection, Satan was unable to get to him. As a born again believer, we have certain protections against the evil one. God agreed and allowed Satan to inflict this man from the top of his head to the bottom of his feet, but commanded Satan to spare Job’s life. It got so bad that Job’s own wife said curse God and die! It is interesting that Satan killed jobs kids but left his wife in tact. My friends, sometimes threw no fault of our own, it can get so bad that all we have left is our faith.
Maintain righteousness, no matter who disagrees
We see the people who came to comfort Job actually turned out to inflict more pain into his life. Job’s so called friends, continued to insist that he was in sin! Now, the Bible does not say how long the dialogue among Job and his friends lasted, but through it all, Job maintained that he had not sinned to bring about this tragedy. In fact, Job listed his righteous practices in Chapter 31. Now, Job was not claiming to be sinless, but rather he was not currently practicing sin, therefore God’s treatment of him made no sense. Job was saying God you setup the rules and I am not breaking them, so why is this happening?
Job understood that God was allowing this testing in his life, but did not fully understand the cosmic war between good and evil or God and Satan. Remember, I will put enmity between the woman’s seed and the serpent’s seed. My friends, when testing and temptation come into our lives, we might not understand who is doing what, but like Job, will we maintain our integrity before God? When God begin to speak in Chapter 38, how did he answer Job? God declared that as the Creator, no one can counsel or question him over morality. He explains to Job that he created the heavens, earth, mankind, animals, day, night, death and hell. He then ask Job to answer him, since Job was rebuking him.
God will honor the righteous man
Now, you notice that God does not say Job had sinned to bring about the problems. In fact, at the end of the book, God says Job is righteous and must pray for his friends, so God would not deal with them according to their folly. However, we see Job repented for bringing God’s character into question. We also see that after Job passed the test, Satan is quiet, but God answers him with another 140 years of tremendous blessing. My friends, when we go through our trials and tribulations, let’s remember the battle ensuing over our souls and if we are living holy, regardless who says what, stand firm in that position.
The Book of Psalms: 1410 – 430 BC
Scholars believe the psalms were written over a period of approximately 1,000 years. Many of them do not indicate who authored them. My commentary attributes 77 to David, 12 to Asaph, a priest in the service of Solomon, 10 to the sons of Korah, 2 to Solomon, 1 to Moses, 1 to Heman, a wise man, 1 to Ethan, a wise man and the remaining 50 are anonymous, but tradition attributes them to Ezra
Psalm 1
Here we see the writer questions what fellowship does light have with darkness? He reminds us that we must love the Lord with all our heart, soul, mind and strength. As a result, we will be like a tree planted by the waters and the fruit of the Spirit will flow from our lives. It is not that a soul has to be doing the perfect ministry, because as long as we are abiding in him, our lives are prosperous. Now, he contrast the wicked person will be like the chaff. The chaff is the worthless substance after the worker waves the winnowing fan over the wheat. In the judgment, the Lord will separate the wheat from the chaff or the sheep from the goats, the wheat will be gathered into his barn but he will burn up the chaff with unquenable fire.
Psalm 2
Here the writer gives us a glimpse into the Trinity. The entire psalm is telling us the authority that the Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ has been given. Also, we hear the words spoken at our Lord’s baptism, this is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased. We see Jesus as the judge with the coming wrath of God and we are encouraged to always trust in him.
Psalm 5
This psalm is all about the practices of the righteous being completely opposite to the ways of the wicked. The righteous rise in the morning with God’s praises on their mind and his words on their lips. What are our first actions when we rise in the morning? The righteous seek God in his quiet places and call upon the Lord in their destress. Not so with the wicked, the words that come out of their mouth and thoughts roaming around in their head are perverted. Make no mistake my friends, if we are living a wicked life, God hates this. There is absolutely no way God sees a person as righteous and wicked at the same time. We are either serving God or serving the flesh.
Psalm 14
This psalm paints a picture of how depraved the wicked are. Romans borrows language from this Psalm. The fool has said in his heart there is no God. The wicked person who speaks like this is corrupt and a perverted lifestyle will follow. The writer is telling you that none of the wicked does good. They have all turned aside to follow the wrong way. However, we see that God is with the righteous. Now, we know that we all have sinned in the past, but this psalm is telling you there is a distinct difference between the wicked and righteous.
Psalm 19
Here we get a glimpse into God’s majesty and man’s awareness. The writer tells us the creation itself testifies of the Creator. There is beautiful imagery of the earth, sun and physical laws governing their orbits. In other words, mankind is without excuse when he stands before God. God’s laws are perfect to convert the soul and he is using the Holy Spirit to convict every soul of sin, righteous and judgment.
Psalm 22
Here we get some prophetic words of our Lord’s crucifixion. Some of the words could be related to the writer but some definitely point to the Lord. My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? This could be a general cry of anyone whose life is in distress. My friends, I encourage you to cry this out when you feel God is not coming to your rescue. As the writer proceeds, we read he trusted in the Lord and let him rescue him, since he delights in him. Obviously, the writer is referring to someone negatively commenting on a person who is trusting in the Lord. This gets a little more difficult to believe the writer is referring to himself because it involves him knowing others thoughts and words. Now, when the writer gets to they pierced my hands and feet as well as divided my garments and cast lots for my clothing, we see he is referring to the Lord’s crucifixion. My friends, this psalm was written approximately 1,000 years before our Lord’s death. Also, my understanding is that crucifixion as a type of death was not widely used until around 100 BC, some 900 years later.
Psalm 23
Perhaps the most quoted psalm of all. This Psalm encourages us to see God fulfilling every role or need of our lives. I also see the same pattern used by our Lord in Matthew 6:9. Please follow this link for more insight into the Lord’s prayer: The Lord’s Prayer
God is our master and king
- Psalm: The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. Matthew: Our Father who are in heaven.
God is our leader and we must feed on him
- Psalm: He makes me to lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside the still waters and restores my soul. He leads me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Matthew: Give us this day our daily bread.
God will test our faith and Satan will tempt us to sin
- Psalm: Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil for you are with me. Matthew: Lead us not into temptation.
God is our discipliner when we need it
- Psalm: Your rod and staff comfort me. The rod corrects us and staff forgives us. Matthew: Forgive us our debt.
God is our provider therefore we can love our enemies
- Psalm: You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies, you anoint my head with oil and my cup runs over. Matthew: As we forgive others or our enemies.
God is our comforter and ultimate resting place
- Psalm: Surely goodness and mercy will follow me and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. Matthew: For yours is the kingdom and power and glory forever.
Psalm 37
Here we get encouragement, the faithfulness of God, a call to patience and ultimate state of the righteous. Also, we get the current condition and ultimate state of the wicked. Delight yourself in the Lord and he shall give you the desires of your heart. This does not mean for us to read our Bible and ask God to fill our desires that are not consistent with his plan. God wants us to abide in him and he will give us his desires for our life. The writer admits to being young but apparently is old at this time and can attest to God’s faithfulness to provide for the righteous. Remember, our Lord reminds us that God provides for the birds. However, he commands us to seek him first and all these things will be added to us. My friends, at the end of the day, is there a greater desire other than to be in his will?
Psalm 38
This psalm gives us a good picture of a truly repentant heart. There is no soundness in me because of my sin. My iniquities have gone over my head like a heavy burden. My wounds are foul and festering because of my foolishness. My heart pants and my strength fails. Here we are pouring out our hearts and asking the Holy Spirit to help us stop any particular sin. For my sorrow is continually before me, so I will declare my iniquity and will be in anguish over my sin. Now, you can also declare your weakness and temptations, while understanding you are not actually disobeying the Lord by sinning. Do not forsake me Lord, my God or be far from me. Make haste to help me Lord. Remember, our Lord says for us to be persistent in prayer because the Father wants to give us the Holy Spirit and at times, wonderful material gifts.
Psalm 42
This psalm gives us some wonderful insight into how a deeply troubled soul comes to the Lord. As the deer pants for the water, so my soul thirsts for you, the living God. Our Lord said blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. Why are you cast down my soul and why are you disquieted within me? We must speak to God when our minds are raging within us. The writer says deep calls unto deep. My friends, there is a place within our spirit that is only reserved for his Spirit. We are reminded that the presence of the Lord is with us during the day and at night. Remember, our Lord says my peace I give unto you, not like the world.
Psalm 45
Here the writer gives us beautiful imagery of the Father, Son and ultimate goal for his church. Gird your sword upon your thigh, O Mighty One and your right hand shall teach you awesome things. This is a picture of the Father and Son preparing for warfare. Your throne, God is forever and ever, you love righteousness and hate wickedness, therefore God, your God has anointed you. Hebrews tells us this is the Father declaring the Son, the Lord Jesus Christ is God.
Listen, O daughter, consider and incline your ear, forget your own people and your father’s house. So the King will greatly desire your beauty, because he is your Lord, worship him. Remember, our Lord says that anyone who loves his family and even his own life, is not worthy of him. She shall be brought to the King in robes of many colors. The virgins, her companions who follow her, shall be brought to you. With gladness and rejoicing they shall be brought and will enter the King’s palace. I see a picture of the Bride of Christ, the church, coming down as New Jerusalem, dazzling and clothed in splendid garments.
Psalm 90
Here we get an understanding of how to view our eternal God, as well as our temporary lives. Lord, you have been our dwelling place in all generations, even from everlasting to everlasting. For a 1,000 years in your sight are like yesterday when it is past and like a watch in the night. Peter reaffirms that a day is like a 1,000 years and a 1,000 years, like a day. When we approach our God in prayer, it is helpful to understand this Being is eternal. My friends, this is why I always ask the Lord to help me see things from his perspective. Regarding man, his days are 70 years and if by reason of strength, we might get 80. Therefore, teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom. Remember, James says what is our life but a vapor, that is here today and gone tomorrow. This tells us to live this life as our testing ground with an eye on eternity.
Psalm 139
This psalm reminds us that God knows us intimately and there is no where we can go to escape his eternal gaze. You know my rising up, understand my thoughts afar off and are acquainted with all my ways. Remember the letters addressed to the 7 Churches in the Revelation, I know your works. Therefore, it is hilarious to think that we can hide any thought or action from God. If I ascend into heaven or make my bed in hell, behold you are there. Now, this is not saying those in hell are receiving God’s grace. The writer is just illustrating that God’s presence is everywhere.
You formed my inward parts when I was made in the lowest parts of the earth. This is a picture of a child in the womb. If I could count your thoughts toward me, they would me more than the sand. My friends, our Creator longs to fellowship with us. Remember, our Lord said the Father is seeking those to worship him. As we continue to worship our God, let us say as the writer, search me O God and know my heart, try me and know my anxieties. If there is any wicked way in me, correct and lead me in the way of everlasting life.
Psalm 150
The psalms end with an exuberant call to praise! Praise God in his sanctuary and in his mighty firmament! Praise him for his might acts and according to his greatness! Praise him with the trumpet, the harp, the timbrel, in dance and on stringed instruments! Yes, let everything that has breath praise the Lord! Paul says, brothers I beseech you by the mercy of God to present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy and blameless, which is our reasonable service.
Proverbs
Again, the Bible tells us Solomon wrote over 3,000 proverbs and many songs. We can gain great insight from studying the proverbs. However, we must remember any teaching under the Old Covenant must be reconciled with the New Covenant. There were mysteries under the Old Covenant like the virgin birth of Christ, which could not be understood until the time. Daniel was told to seal up some of his prophecy until the end. Daniel said mankind will run back and forth and knowledge will increase at the time of the end. Now, since God has sent us his Son our Lord Jesus, given access to the Holy Spirit and revealed to us the only way to eternal life, we can verify some of Solomon’s wisdom.
The proper fear of God gives us victory
- The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction. Our Lord tells us not to fear those who can only kill the body, but rather fear him who has the power to destroy both body and soul in hell. My friends, once we have the proper fear of God, we no longer have to fear anything else.
We must seek God while he is available
- Then they will call on me but I will not answer. They will seek me diligently but they will not find me. The Bible says we will find God when we seek him with all our heart. However my friends, there is coming a day when no man can work, so we must work while we have the day.
Ultimately, God will separate the sheep from the goats
- For the upright will dwell in the land and the blameless will remain in it, but the wicked will be cut off from the earth. My friends, every proverb given tells you that there is a difference between the righteous man and wicked man. Anyone telling us we can both serve the Lord and sin, while remaining saved is lying.
Always obey God’s rules
- Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him and he will direct your paths. What this means is no matter who says what is moral or fine, if the actions are against God’s rules do not participate in it.
We must understand how the heart works
- Keep your heart with all diligence for out of it springs the issues of life. Our Lord said it is not what goes into the mouth but what comes out of the heart, that defiles a man. When we examine our life, if wickedness is coming from it, then we can be assured our heart is wicked before the Lord.
Always remember, sin is subtle
- Solomon gives us a list of 7 things that are an abomination to the Lord: A proud look, A lying tongue, Hands that shed innocent blood, A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that are swift in running to evil, A false witness, One who sows discord among brethren. My friends, this is by no means an exhaustive list because we see nothing mentioned about sexual immorality.
The path to glory is narrow and difficult
- There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death. There are many paths our lives can take, but the narrow, difficult path of the cross is the only one that leads to everlasting life. This is the path that requires us to deny our flesh, pickup our cross and follow him.
Because we win in the end, we can be of good cheer
- A merry heart makes a cheerful countenance, but by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken. We must always have an optimistic verses pessimistic view of our life. Remember, our Lord said we will have tribulation in this life, but be of good cheer.
Always encourage people to follow God’s rules
- He who justifies the wicked and he who condemns the just, both of them are an abomination to the Lord. We never encourage people to live in sin or speak against a person clearly doing the work of the Lord. Like Paul said, some people sins are clear but others follow them. Our goal as Christians is to help others find the narrow way, while keeping ourself free of sin.
Jesus is the only way to eternal life
- The Lord possessed me at the beginning of his ways, before his works of old. I have been established from everlasting, from the beginning, before there was ever an earth. For whoever finds me finds life. We can see that Solomon is using wisdom as a metaphor for our Lord Jesus. Remember, John says he who has the Son, has life.
Ecclesiastes
Ecclesiastes is written from a perspective of everything under the sun or current universe. We cannot take a passage that is in clear opposition to teachings in the New Covenant and try to apply it to our lives. For instance, when he writes the earth abides forever, the sun rises and the sun goes down, this is true until the Lord returns. The Bible tells us this current, decaying cosmos will be burnt up and our Lord will create a new heaven and earth, were righteous dwells.
Timeless wisdom to know how to act at certain times
- For everything there is a time: A time to be born. A time to die. A time to plant. A time to pluck. A time to kill. A time to heal. A time to break down. A time to build up. A time to weep. A time to laugh. A time to cast away. A time to gather. A time to gain. A time to lose. A time to keep silent. A time to speak. A time to love. A time to hate. A time of war. A time of peace. My friends, when we are lead by the Spirit, he teaches us how to respond in any situation.
God did not create us to disobey him
- God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes. My friends, if anyone tells you that God made us sinners, do not believe this. God is not going to be blamed if we reject his ways, live sinful lives and end up in torment.
Our ultimate goal is to fear and obey God
- Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is man’s all. For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil. The Bible tells us that we must all stand before the judgment seat to receive what we have done in these bodies, whether good or evil. My friends, are we living in such a way to receive the best reward?
The Prophets deliver warning and hope
When we read the prophetic message delivered by the Old Testament prophets, their message contained a warning of judgment, a call to repentance and hope of future restoration. The Bible says in Hebrews, God spoke during the Old Testament through many prophets. Noah prophesied God was going to destroy the world for at least a 100 years before the incident. Abraham prophesied that God was going to make a great nation out of him and his descendants would be like the sand of the sea. However, first there would be a 400 year period of bondage. Joseph believed in Abraham’s prophecy and gave instructions not to leave his bones in Egypt. Moses prophesied about the coming of the Messiah and he would be a prophet like himself. The sermons in Acts given by Peter and Stephen confirm that Moses was speaking about the Lord.
Isaiah
From Isaiah we get the prophecy of the coming of the Lord and that he would be born of a virgin. This prophecy probably made no sense to Isaiah because virgins cannot get pregnant. Also, Isaiah gives us a glimpse into the suffering Messiah before his ultimate reign in the new heaven and earth. The suffering aspect of the Messiah was misunderstood by the religious leaders and many of the people. How about us my friends, do we understand we must deny ourself, pickup our cross and follow Jesus before we can reign when he returns? Ultimately, Isaiah gives us powerful hope of a new heaven and earth where peace and righteous will prevail. However, he confirms the wicked worm will never die, nor with their fire be quenched. My friends, there is a part of us that will never cease to exist.
Jeremiah
Jeremiah warned the people to turn from idolatry or God would send the Babylonians in judgment. Now there came a point when repentance was no longer an option for Israel. If they wanted to live, their only choice was not to resist the invasion but just submit themselves to King Nebuchadnezzar. However, our Lord told them that after 70 years of exile, he would begin to gather them back into the land. The lamentations of Jeremiah give us a picture of the prophet’s compassion for the nation. Even for us my friends, if we continue in sin, there comes a point when judgment is unavoidable.
Nahum, Obadiah, Amos, Hosea, Habakkuk, Haggai (Noah)
I use the phrase Noah, the Just, Must Zoom to remember the names of the minor prophetic books. Noah: Nahum, Obadiah, Amos, Hoses – the Just: Joel, Jonah – Must: Micah, Malachi – Zoom: Zephaniah, Zechariah. Noah prepared the world before God’s 1st global judgment and the rapture let’s me know that the Just Must Zoom.
Nahum delivered messages of warning and hope to Nineveh. Nineveh was the capital of Assyria, a pagan nation that God used to judge Israel. God also sent the prophet Obadiah to warn the pagan nation of Edom. In Amos, we get warning of judgment along with the promise of future restoration. Amos also assures us that God will always reveal his future plans to his prophets. Think of your own life, have you received warnings that something terrible is about to happen if you continue to live the way you are living?
Hosea, a contemporary of Isaiah pronounced strong judgment against Ephraim, the northern kingdom and Judah, the southern kingdom. God called Hosea to take a wife of harlotry, so he went and married Gomer. She continued to return to prostitution and at one point, Hosea bought her for 15 shekels of silver and a little barley. God was demonstrating how unfaithful the nation had been after he loved and showered her will abundance. How about us my friends, do we continue to live a lukewarm life toward the Lord? What did he say would happen to the lukewarm?
The prophet Habakkuk asked God why were the Babylonians or evil in general allowed to continue. Like us my friends, we must understand God’s timing is not ours and every being has free will so if God has to send someone to hell, it will definitely be on them. Ultimately, we must remember the righteous will inherit the earth and the wicked will end up in the lake of fire. The prophet Haggai encouraged the people to get busy rebuilding the temple.
Joel & Jonah
In the prophet Joel, we get the locust and coming nations to rule over Israel but also the promise of the Holy Spirit in the later days. Joel also gives us great hope of restoration after the locust has eaten up so many years from a soul. My friends, never forget that as long as breath is moving through our lungs, we can build something beautiful for the Lord!
Jonah was sent to the pagan nation Nineveh. Initially, Jonah disobeyed and God disciplined him until Jonah obeyed. My friends, God has placed a great calling on this little man so, unlike Jonah, I am not going to disobey. Now Jonah knew God’s character, that he was slow to anger, long suffering and looking for a reason not to bring judgment on Nineveh. Therefore, when the King and entire city repented, Jonah was mad and wanted to die. My friends, we must always maintain deep compassion for those who are lost and never forget God is trying to rescue the lost. Remember, the Lord held out for the thief’s last few hours. Now some people have a problem with the great fish swallowing Jonah, but this would be an easy task for the Creator of the universe.
Micah & Malachi
From the prophet Micah, we get where the Messiah will be born and cloaked within the prophecy is they will strike the judge of Israel with a rod on the cheek. Again, the suffering aspect of the Messiah was hidden in the Old Testament. My friends, why is this aspect of the Christian life misunderstood by so many?
Malachi, the last prophet sent during the time of their captivity provided hope of physical restoration and hints of the soon coming Messiah. We get the prophecy of Elijah coming before the great and dreadful day of the Lord. This is why I believe one of the prophets in Revelation 11 will be Elijah. I also see the prophecy that says he will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children lest I come and strike the earth with a curse referring to John the Baptist. No doubt, the church has been trying to turn the lost to the Lord for the last 2,000 years. Finally, the Lord says for those who feared him, the Lord listened and a book of remembrance was written before him. My friends, is your name written in the Lambs Book of Life?
Zephaniah & Zechariah
Zephaniah, a contemporary of Jeremiah also pronounced judgment on Judah as well as the surrounding pagan nations. However, the book finishes will a beautiful description of God returning a pure language and rejoicing with singing over you, O daughter of Zion. Remember, prior to the tower of Babel, the world spoke one language. I see the daughter of Zion as a reference to us, the Bride of Christ.
The prophet Zechariah, who was murdered in the temple, used very symbolic language describing the fall of Jerusalem to the Babylonian army. He also gives hope to the people when he says Zerubbabel has laid the foundations of the temple and he will finish it, referring to the rebuilt temple. Furthermore, he gives us incredible hope when he describes the Lord’s return to the mountain of Olives. Remember, he ascended from the same location and the angel said to the disciples he would return in like manner. Finally, we get a glimpse of life during the Millennial age and the punishment for all the nations left on the earth who do not come up to worship the King.
The exile and return: 603 to 397 BC: 206 years
Man’s kingdoms and God’s ultimate kingdom
Ezekiel
During the exile, God spoke to two main prophets, Ezekiel and Daniel. Ezekiel was given an awesome vision of God and the powerful Cherubim around his throne. Also, he was shown the vile practices Israel was committing, that caused the Lord to bring judgment. He also pronounced judgment on most of the nations and gives us a clearer picture of Satan, the anointed Cherub. You were perfect in your ways from the day you were created until iniquity was found in you. Therefore, I cast you as a profane thing out of the mountain of God. Later, he gives hope of Jerusalem’s restoration, which appears to refer to the New Covenant. I believe Chapters 40 through the end of the Book have prophecies of a rebuilt temple, temple operations during the 1,000 year Millennial reign and final description of the saints inheriting the earth.
Daniel
The Book of Daniel has been referred to as the Revelation of the Old Testament. This book reveals the kingdoms of mankind, the kingdom of God, millennium and eternal state in the single most comprehensive place. The King of Babylon received a dream that symbolized the kingdoms of mankind in the form of a statute of a man. Daniel received the same prophecy over a series of dreams symbolizing the kingdoms as different animals. Now, we see Daniel and his companions, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego defy their rulers and choose persecution throughout their lives. My friends, when persecution enters our world because of Christ, will we stay faithful?
After a time of fasting and prayer, Daniel was given the 70 weeks prophecy to finish the transgression, make an end of sins, make reconciliation for iniquity, bring in everlasting righteousness, seal up vision and prophecy and anoint the Most Holy. The prophecy said their would be 69 weeks from the decree to build the streets and wall until the Messiah is cut off. Then he shall confirm a covenant with many for 1 week, but in the middle of the week he shall bring an end to the sacrifice and offering. I believe the last week or 7 year period of this prophecy is detailed in the Book of Revelation given to John. I believe the opening of the 1st seal in the Revelation will start the clock on this last week or 7 year period. According to the prophecies I was given from the Lord, his return in my sister Deborah’s lifetime and the the words “It is Beginning”, I believe we are in the last week. Eschatology or the study of the end times is a complex topic, for more insight please click on this link. End Times or Eschatology
Conclusion of Old Testament: 397 BC to 4 BC: 401 years
God’s silence in history and our life
The last book of the Old Testament is Malachi and scholars date this book around 432 to 435 BC. After this prophet, God did not send any more Old Testament prophets and was waiting to send the Messiah, our Lord Jesus. Have you ever had a period in your life when it felt like God was silent? If you are a believer and living for the Lord, just know that he is still moving behind the scenes. However, if you have stopped reading your Bible, praying and thinking about the Lord’s program this could indicate you have left your first love. If you have fallen into this state my friends, like the Church of Ephesus in the Revelation, you must repent and do the first works.
The Temples of God
God’s initial plan was to dwell among his creation because in Genesis we read God came walking in the Garden in the cool of the day looking for Adam. However, by the time of Noah, mankind with the help of some fallen angels, had become so wicked God said it pained him he had made us. However, the Bible says God still had one man and Noah found grace.
The Tabernacle
During Israel’s wilderness experience, God established many laws within the Old Covenant and directed Moses to construct a tabernacle or temporary home. Within this temporary home, there was a place called the holy of holies which was the place where God’s presence rested.
Solomon and Nehemiah’s Structure
After 480 years in the promise land, God instructed Solomon on how to construct the 1st permanent temple. Afterwards, God’s glory appeared. After destruction of the 1st temple, God instructed Nehemiah, Ezra, Zerubbabel and others on how to construct the 2nd temple. Our Lord predicted and history tells us that this 2nd temple was destroyed in AD 70. Now certain Jews are busy trying to construct a 3rd temple. In fact, I believe they have sacrificed the red heifer and have the ashes ready. However, I assure you my friends, God’s presence will not rest in that structure.
Our Physical Bodies
After our Lord Jesus established the New Covenant, Paul tells us our bodies are the temple of God. Ultimately, we see in the Revelation, New Jerusalem has no need for a temple. The reason is we are the final temple being built on the foundations of the apostles and prophets, our Lord being the chief cornerstone. Peter says we are being built up into a holy temple for the final dwelling place of God. At the end of the day, we read in the Revelation, behold the dwelling place of God is with man.
New Jerusalem
My friends, we must understand God’s desire is to prepare us for his final dwelling place, the New Jerusalem. Are we allowing the Holy Spirit to dwell in our temple or is he constantly striving with us to clean the sin out? God will not force himself on us because our Lord said I stand at the door and knock. Please allow me to encourage you my friend, to open your life to the Lord. This means giving our Lord some of our time and using our talents and gifts to further his agenda.
Deborahs-Lifetime 