God's Plans

“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” declares the Lord. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways And My thoughts than your thoughts.”

Isaiah‬ ‭55‬:‭8‬-‭9

One very important attribute of God’s nature is omniscience. God has known me from before time began, and He knows my future just as well as He knows my past. He knows my needs and my prayers before I pray, and He knows what is best for me and for His eternal kingdom.

Compared with this unfathomable wisdom and knowledge-my own understanding is very, very limited. I have very little knowledge of the lives of even those closest to me. I cannot read their minds, understand their background and decisions, much less their unknowable future. I don’t feel their pain, and I can’t do much to solve their toughest problems. But I do know the One who can and does.

Another thing I know more each day is that God has plans for each of us that are nothing like we can imagine. This is why we need faith, to let go of our own plans and seek God’s plans each day.

My Sunday Bible fellowship has been studying the Acts of the Apostles. One thing that is clear from the start of this book is that the apostles of Jesus didn’t have a plan. In spite of years spent with Jesus, they still had a very Jewish worldview when they entered the upper room to wait for the Spirit of God to come. The Lord had a much greater plan than establishing another earthly kingdom in Jerusalem with mortal subjects of flesh and blood.

This plan began to unfold on the day of Pentecost, when the early disciples received the Holy Spirit and began preaching the word of faith in languages that people from other nations could understand. Thousands of people believed the gospel of Christ and received the Holy Spirit that day, but God had even greater plans.

God gave the apostles special power to preach the gospel, to cause the lame to walk and the blind to see, even to cast out demons and bring some who were dead back to life. God also gave the apostles boldness and authority in the congregation of believers, such that even the religious authorities feared them. But God had even greater plans.

"For I know the plans that I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart."

Jeremiah 29:11-13 (NASB95)

The persecution that arose after the stoning of Stephen was another plan of God that was greater than the plans of men. This persecution caused all but the apostles to be scattered around the Roman empire beyond the walls of Jerusalem and outside the territory of Judea. It also brought the chief persecutor into direct confrontation with the Lord Jesus, and after his conversion to be known as Paul-the Apostle of Gentiles.

In Jerusalem, the regional King Herod had plans to kill the apostles, starting with the beheading of James and imprisonment of Peter. But God demonstrated His greater plan by breaking Peter’s bonds, opening prison doors and leading him past squadrons of guards and soldiers to his freedom. 

After this, the apostles continued to preach and lead the church in Jerusalem, while Herod was consumed by worms and died under the wrath of God. Many years later when Paul made his final trip to visit the apostles and fulfill his vow at the temple, there were tens of thousands of Jewish believers in Jerusalem who were also “zealous for the law”.

Paul ultimately became a prisoner of Rome due to the religious persecution that he himself started. But even in this, God had greater plans to make Paul a prolific evangelist and author of much of what we now call the New Testament. Paul’s ministry in Rome left a community of underground believers there to influence the empire and its ruling families. This underground church in Rome eventually led to the conversion of Emperor Constantine and a remnant of true Christianity in the world that continues to this day.

In my own life there have been a few times when my plans were changed by the sovereign plans of God. I know now that God has still more plans for me, and I’m learning to trust and wait for these to unfold in my life. In the meantime I will seek His presence and the foretaste of glory that brings me hope and joy.

Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways! 

Romans 11:33 (NASB95) 

Faith #3: The Last Days

Making the top 3 on my top 10 list of reasons for faith in Jesus is the collection of prophecies in the Bible  regarding the Last Days.

These eschatological prophecies cannot be understood without a broad understanding of the Gospel of Christ and the Kingdom of Heaven. This messianic kingdom is the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy to establish the anointed descendant of David as ruler of an everlasting kingdom.

The establishment of the eternal kingdom of our Lord necessarily fulfilled and concluded the animal sacrifice and ritual ceremonies of the Old Testament. Jesus our Lord is the final Messiah in the lineage of King David and His kingdom is built on His righteousness and the faith He has given us.

Once I understood this I was able to see that many of the end-times prophecies in the Bible refer both to the destruction of Jerusalem in the first century, and the establishment of the eternal kingdom of Messiah. What the prophets and scholars (and even the disciples of Jesus) did not understand is that this coming kingdom would be invisible to human flesh, ruling hearts and minds rather than armies and nations. Of course a righteous eternal kingdom could never be established using earthly power to rule sinful mankind. This is obvious to us now, having the mind of Christ and the Holy Spirit to guide us.

We are living in the last days. Today Christ the Messiah reigns at the right hand of God in the midst of His enemies. There is a coming day of wrath when Christ will return with the host of heaven to remove His enemies from creation and give eternal peace and joy to the people of God.

This mystery that is buried deep in ancient Jewish prophecies is unique in the religions of this world. It was intentionally hidden by God, to be revealed by the Holy Spirit after Jesus was seated at the right hand of God. This revelation is a constant source of life-giving faith for me. We do not wait for an earthly kingdom; Jesus the Messiah is now and always the Lord of all creation. That is the gospel of the kingdom and the hope of glory that is promised to all who believe.

Isaiah 30 - Apocalypse in a Nutshell

I want to focus on Isaiah 30 in this post, because it pertains to the church (Zion, the kingdom of God) and the threat posed by the resurgent Islamist head of the beast (Assyria).

BEHOLD, HE IS COMING WITH THE CLOUDS,

and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him;

 and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him.

So it is to be. Amen.

Revelation 1:7

For behold, the Lord will come in fire,

and his chariots like the whirlwind,

to render his anger in fury,

and his rebuke with flames of fire.

Isaiah 66:15

Both Jews and Christians recognize Messianic prophecy embedded in the writings of Old Testament prophets, even in prophecies that were fulfilled long ago. Such is the case with most of the book of Isaiah.

The Ungodly Alliance

Through a land of trouble and anguish,

from where come the lioness and the lion,

the adder and the flying fiery serpent,

they carry their riches on the backs of donkeys,

and their treasures on the humps of camels,

to a people that cannot profit them.

Egypt’s help is worthless and empty;

therefore I have called her

“Rahab who sits still.”

Isaiah 30:6-7

The LORD admonishes Israel not to go to Egypt for help against the Assyrian armies. Against God's advice, the stubborn and rebellious children of God will carry out an ungodly plan, and make an ungodly alliance. They make an alliance with those who cannot possibly help. Does this sound familiar today? The alliances made by the western powers cause them to make ungodly compromises on the battlefield and lead them into treaties with untrustworthy nations that undermine their true friends in the region.

Rebellious People

And now, go, write it before them on a tablet

and inscribe it in a book,

that it may be for the time to come

as a witness forever.

For they are a rebellious people,

lying children,

children unwilling to hear

the instruction of the LORD;

Isaiah 30:8-9

There is no doubt that this prophecy is to be carved in stone for a distant time in the future. Thus the prophecy applies now. The children are those who have been set aside by covenant with the LORD, who have become rebellious and rejected God. Today this would be the apostate church.

A Thousand Shall Flee at the Threat of One

Because you despise this word

and trust in oppression and perverseness

and rely on them,

therefore this iniquity shall be to you

like a breach in a high wall, bulging out, and about to collapse...

For thus said the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel,

“In returning and rest you shall be saved;

in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.”

But you were unwilling, and you said,

“No! We will flee upon horses”;

therefore you shall flee away...

A thousand shall flee at the threat of one;

at the threat of five you shall flee,

till you are left

like a flagstaff on the top of a mountain,

like a signal on a hill.

Isaiah 30:13-17

Because of their rejection of God, the rebellious children are subject to terror. The idea that multitudes will flee from the threats of a few people is the very definition of terrorism. It can only be defeated as spoken of GOD, by "the strength that comes from repentance and faith." I fear that my generation lacks the faith of our fathers, and many who don't "bug out" and run to the hills will simply compromise with the beast and take his mark on their heads and hands.

Judgment Begins in God's Household

For it is time for judgment to begin with the household of God;

and if it begins with us first, what will be the outcome

for those who do not obey the gospel of God?

I Peter 4:17

At the end of this season of testing, God's wrath will be turned away from his children and focus on those who will be eternally judged.

Therefore the LORD waits to be gracious to you,

and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you.

For the LORD is a God of justice;

blessed are all those who wait for him.

Isaiah 30:18

This final time of tribulation will bring the world to its "last and greatest harvest." For those who remain faithful, those with wisdom will shine like stars in the darkness. They will lead many to righteousness, but the wicked will become more wicked. The church will put away their idols and again be led by the Holy Spirit. I believe even many of the children of Abraham will be revived in this great harvest of souls. When those who dwell in Jerusalem cry out, the Lord will hear their cry and no longer hide from them, but their eyes will see his face and their ears will hear his voice.

When the Towers Fall

And on every lofty mountain and every high hill

there will be brooks running with water,

in the day of the great slaughter, when the towers fall.

Moreover, the light of the moon will be as the light of the sun,

and the light of the sun will be sevenfold, as the light of seven days,

in the day when the LORD binds up the brokenness of his people,

and heals the wounds inflicted by his blow.

Behold, the name of the LORD comes from afar,

burning with his anger, and in thick rising smoke;

his lips are full of fury,

and his tongue is like a devouring fire...

Isaiah 30:25-27

In the final day, the Day of the Lord, this chapter says the sun will shine seven times brighter as the LORD approaches, burning with anger and shrouded by clouds of thick smoke. John also mentions that the sun will burn with intense heat before the Lord returns. The world may not know it, but when the Lord comes with the fiery seraphim of heaven, all that light and heat is just a preview of what is to come. The return of the Lord will be a day of comfort and rejoicing for those who suffered at the hands of the beast, but a day of terror for the terrorist. The king mentioned at the end of this chapter is the beast, the spawn of Satan, the one who will be cast alive into the lake of fire. 

The Assyrians will be terror-stricken

at the voice of the LORD, when he strikes with his rod.

For a burning place has long been prepared;

indeed, for the king it is made ready,

its pyre made deep and wide,

with fire and wood in abundance;

the breath of the LORD, like a stream of sulfur, kindles it.

Isaiah 30:31,33

The Curse on the Dragon

I was reading Psalm 140 one day recently.  It's one of those Psalms that don't get quoted a lot in church because it's a prayer for vengeance.

"As for the head of those who surround me,
     May the mischief of their lips cover them.
"May burning coals fall upon them;
      May they be cast into the fire,
      Into deep pits from which they cannot rise.
"May a slanderer not be established in the earth;
            May evil hunt the violent man speedily."
Psalm 140:9-11 NASB

Many of the Psalms have this mysterious double meaning, one as a prayer and one as a prophecy. In this Psalm David is praying for deliverance from his enemies who have surrounded him. This is the most obvious meaning when you are reading or reciting the Psalm.

But if you look closely you will see an underlying prophecy regarding the final fate of Satan and his followers. The "head" of those who surround David is also their "leader" or "chief". David in a prophetic sense is Christ and His kingdom.  The "head" of those who surround Christ is Satan.  The curse which is repeated every time this Psalm is recited is that Satan, the beast and the false prophet will be cast into a fiery pit from which they shall never arise.

When the thousand years are completed, Satan will be released from his prison, and will come out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together for the war; the number of them is like the sand of the seashore. And they came up on the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, and fire came down from heaven and devoured them. And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are also; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
Revelation 20:7-10 NASB

There are two interesting men mentioned in verse 11. In Hebrew they are Ish-Lashon (man of the tongue) and Ish-Hamas (man of violence). These are most surely the false prophet and the beast of the Revelation in a prophetic sense. I also found it interesting that the word "Hamas" is used in the context of those surrounding the camp of David. I don't think it's a coincidence that Hamas means "zeal" in Arabic and "violence" in Hebrew.

Those who are on the wrong side in this cosmic battle constantly participate in this ancient curse.  An ever expanding chorus of martyrs in heaven join in this prayer. Choose this day whom you will serve...as for me and my house we will serve the Lord!

Babylon and The New Jerusalem

Previously I posted a quote from Revelation about leaving Babylon. The book of Revelation is really a tale of two cities - Babylon, the city on many waters, and the new Jerusalem, the city on a hill being prepared for the bride of Christ.

Note that from the time of Revelation until now, neither city has been seen. One city, Babylon, was destroyed by the Persians centuries before Christ. The other has yet to be seen on Earth. So both cities have special symbolic meaning.

Babylon represents the world system of power and wealth, the great harlot who sits on many waters, by which the merchants of the world were made rich by the wealth of her trade. It is a worldwide kingdom that spans across time and enslaves its citizens with the deceitfulness of riches. Its ruler is the prince of Babylon, the ruler of this age.

The New Jerusalem is the city of our God, in the mountain of His holiness. It is a city not built by human hands, whose center is the Throne of God, from which flow the streams of living water that make glad the city of God. It is built on a foundation of precious stones, the apostles and prophets, and whose cornerstone is Jesus Christ the Lord.

Ancient Babylon was used by God to separate and purify His people. The Jews who returned from Babylon to rebuild Jerusalem left established businesses and perhaps family to restore the temple of God. The ones who stayed in Babylon chose a more worldly Kingdom and lost their godly identity.

This is the choice we as Christians are now presented, to choose which master we will serve, God or Mammon (money). I had for most of my life focused my time and energy on the latter, but I sense God calling me back to focus on Him. The time is short for the kingdom of Babylon, and I feel the need to get oil for my lamp while there is still light. I have more to write on this subject, which I will do as time permits.