The Author and Finisher of Faith

Therefore, since we have so great a cloud
 of witnesses surrounding us,
let us also lay aside every encumbrance
 and the sin which so easily entangles us,
and let us run with endurance
 the race that is set before us,

fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and
perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him
endured the cross, despising the shame,
and has sat down at the right hand
of the throne of God.

For consider Him who has endured
such hostility by sinners against Himself,
so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
[Hebrews 12:1-3 NASB95]

I recently memorized these verses of Hebrews and have been considering Jesus...
"so that I will not grow weary and lose heart.”

But my dilemma is this...How can I run with endurance the race that is set before me? Do I have that kind of faith?

This morning the answer came...Jesus writes the law of faith on my heart, and He will finish it according to His will, not mine! I can rest on this promise:

For He says to Moses, “I WILL HAVE MERCY ON WHOM I HAVE MERCY, AND I WILL HAVE COMPASSION ON WHOM I HAVE COMPASSION.” So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy. 

[Romans 9:15-16 NASB95]

It does not depend on my will or on my willingness to run, nor does it depend on my speed or endurance. God will accomplish His perfect will in me - in His time and according to His purpose.

All I have to do is continually open my heart to His penmanship!

Guide to Apocalyptic Scriptures

After years of study, I put together this timeline that I have used to understand biblical prophecy related to the end times.  I have intentionally put aside the many teachings I have had on this subject and mainly used the Bible as my guideline, checking what I learn from the Bible and the Spirit against those teachings when necessary and fruitful.  I once again must thank the publishers of the Biblehub website for the enormous benefit of having so much information easily available online.

Click image to expand to readable size

I would just add a few notes.  One is my mapping of the "Great Tribulation" to the entire time period from the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70 until the Day of the Lord at the final trumpet.  I did not set out to take such an unconventional view of this term (the "thlipsis megale" in Greek), however after cross-referencing the synoptic accounts in Matthew, Mark and Luke, I came to the conclusion that the "Olivet Discourse" is mostly referring to the end of the Jewish kingdom and the desecration of the temple by the Roman Emperor. After all, this is what the disciples asked about (the destruction of the temple) and what they would be most concerned about in their lifetimes.  This drove me to review the prophecies of Daniel regarding the abomination of desolation and the cessation of the regular sacrifice which were fulfilled at that time and are not mentioned in Revelation.  The tribulation in my view, is great not only in intensity, but also in its breadth (worldwide) and duration over the centuries.  This trying of our souls involves not only endurance through persecution, but also endurance through false prophecy and the mocking wisdom of man.

Of course, Jesus also talks about His second coming after the great tribulation so we cannot take a "post millennial" viewpoint; the balance of scripture still indicates much to come before the great day of judgment.

If you study end time teachings over the years, you will discover that commonly accepted teachings come and go, and change greatly over time.  This is natural, because nobody really knows when the things yet to come will happen, or exactly how.  That part is up to God.  I may change my own view of some of these events, but I have tried diligently to respect the entire teaching of the Bible and only use the tools available to consolidate wisdom and knowledge from the Bible and present it here in a very broad summary.

I hope you enjoy using this for reference, and consider it prayerfully before commenting below!

His Name is "Maher Shalal Hash Baz"

I'm reading Isaiah now.  I realized after an intense foray into eschatology (study of end-time prophecy) that having an increased understanding of prophecy is an open door for me to re-read the prophets and discern more of God's word.

 

As a matter of fact, I feel a desperate need to read and understand as quickly as possible because the time is short and there is much to do.

 

Today I was reading Isaiah 8: Then the LORD said to me, “Take for yourself a large tablet and write on it in ordinary letters: Swift is the booty, speedy is the prey.

 

Isaiah was so impressed by these words that they became the name of his next son - Maher Shalal Hash Baz.  (Talk about opening the door for witnessing!  Try naming your kid Maher Shalal Hash Baz and let me know how it works out.  I guess the poor boy would get a lot of chances to explain the prophecy right before he got beat up.)

 

I can imagine the prophet and prophetess telling people about their cute baby - "his name is swift the booty speedy the prey" - with their fiery prophet gaze.

 

Whoa where is this conversation headed? Well I'll tell you where.

 

"...for before the boy knows how to cry out ‘My father’ or ‘My mother,’ the wealth of Damascus and the spoil of Samaria will be carried away before the king of Assyria.”

(Isaiah 8:11-15 NASB)

 

One principle in the Bible is the testimony of two witnesses, which are required to pronounce judgement.  In this case the two witnesses are Uriah the priest, and Zechariah the prophet. The law and the prophet - this might sound familiar if you read my earlier post (Two Witnesses at the End of Days).  The wrath of God is immediately preceded by the testimony of two witnesses.

 

The testimony also serves as a sort of contract to prove that God is faithful and His judgments are true.  God's judgment is conditioned upon the people's response to the testimony.  Repentance will always turn away God's wrath.  This is why the LORD has delayed His final judgment on creation.  This is why the "apostacy must come first" - the people must become so hardened that repentance is impossible.  Notice the response in Isaiah 8:

They will pass through the land hard-pressed and famished, and it will turn out that when they are hungry, they will be enraged and curse their king and their God as they face upward. Then they will look to the earth, and behold, distress and darkness, the gloom of anguish; and they will be driven away into darkness. (Isaiah 8:21-22 NASB)

 

This is a prophetic reference to the final judgment, as in Revelation 9:

 

The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands, so as not to worship demons, and the idols of gold and of silver and of brass and of stone and of wood, which can neither see nor hear nor walk; and they did not repent of their murders nor of their sorceries nor of their immorality nor of their thefts. (Rev 9:21-22 NASB) 

 

Finally...

 

Satan has had plenty of antichrists ready for the final conflict, but God has always had a people who would repent and pray for God's mercy; thus the final wrath has been withheld even until now.  It is when God's people are finally "taken out of the way" then "...that lawless one will be revealed whom the Lord will slay with the breath of His mouth and bring to an end by the appearance of His coming." (II Thessalonians 2:7-8 NASB)

 

There may yet be time to delay God's wrath, but the answer won't come through politics or economic genius or military might.  It will come only

 

"...if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways" (II Chronicles 7:14 NASB).

 

Remember,

 

The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. (II Peter 2:9 NASB)

The Two Witnesses at the End of Days

(I have had a powerful writer's block for many months, so please forgive my silence.  I cannot write except under inspiration and have tried many times fruitlessly since my last post.  I have much more to say when that inspiration permits it.)

I've been studying Revelation with a group of men led by pastor and teacher Gene Smith.  Last week he taught from chapter 11 wherein the two witnesses prophesy from Jerusalem for 1260 days during the first half of the final seven years of judgement.

Gene indicated that most scholars regard these two witnesses to be the re-embodied Moses and Elijah from the Old Testament, or at least people who have the same power and ministry.

I did some of my own research (which I always do regardless of who is teaching) and reached the same conclusion!  Here's how I challenged the assertion and the possibilities I studied.

Enoch and Elijah

First, I noted that the two witnesses died.  The Bible says it is appointed unto man once to die, and then comes judgement.  There are only two people mentioned in the Bible who never died - Enoch (Genesis 5:24) and Elijah (II Kings 2:11).  Many scholars believe these are the two witnesses at the end of days.  There is some logic here, because these two could return to life in the last days and actually be killed for the first time. Furthermore, although little is known about Enoch, Jude mentions Enoch as an end-time prophet:

It was also about these men that Enoch, in the seventh generation from Adam, prophesied, saying, “Behold, the Lord came with many thousands of His holy ones, to execute judgment upon all, and to convict all the ungodly of all their ungodly deeds which they have done in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.” Jude 1:14-15

There is little doubt that one of the two is Elijah, as Malachi prophesied and the Jews affirm (even to this day).  Even Jesus referenced John as Elijah's prototype to prepare the way for His first coming.

Moses and Elijah

As Pastor Gene pointed out to us:

Who had the power to shut off the sky so that rain will not fall?  Elijah. (James 5:17, Luke 4:25, I Kings 17:1)  How long did the two witnesses prophesy? (1260 days or three and a half years.)  That is exactly the same amount of time the rain did not fall during Elijah's prophesying.  Amazing!

Who had the power over the waters to turn them into blood, and to strike the earth with every plague?  Moses. (Exodus chapters 7-10)

Who appeared with Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration (Matthew 17:2)?  Moses and Elijah.

The two witnesses stand before the Lord continually.

What better two authorities could reach the Jewish people and turn their hearts to the living Messiah than Moses and Elijah?  These two represent the embodiment of the Old Testament, the Law and the Prophet.

Malachi mentions both Moses and Elijah in his end-time prophecy:

“Remember the law of Moses My servant, even the statutes and ordinances which I commanded him in Horeb for all Israel. “Behold, I am going to send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and terrible day of the LORD. “He will restore the hearts of the fathers to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers, so that I will not come and smite the land with a curse.” Malachi 4:4-6

There is just one minor problem with Moses as the second witness.  Moses the servant of the LORD died there in Moab (Deuteronomy 34:5).  So Moses doesn't exactly parallel Elijah as a person alive and standing before the Lord in heaven.  Today I resolved that conflict (in my own understanding at least.)  The little book of Jude sheds unique light on what happened to Moses after God buried his body.

But Michael the archangel, when he disputed with the devil and argued about the body of Moses, did not dare pronounce against him a railing judgment, but said, “The Lord rebuke you!” Jude 1:9

Deuteronomy 34 says the Lord buried him in the land of Moab, but his eye was not dim nor his vigor abated.  I think God might have just resurrected old Moses and took him to heaven alive.  Why?  If God didn't hide Moses' body the Jews might have worshiped his shrine.  If God took him to heaven in a chariot before their eyes they might surely have worshipped him as some sort of deity.  It makes sense that if God wanted to take him, He might have to do it rather discreetly.  So He sent Michael to go get his body and bring him up to heaven (I suspect).

Getting to the point

On balance I am convinced the two witnesses are Moses and Elijah, in the flesh. Can you imagine the power of these two mighty men of God after spending thousands of years in heaven before the throne of God, returning to earth by God's authorization to convert their Jewish brethren?  If that didn't impress you, how about a little fire from their mouths to slay those who try to kill them?  By the way, who called fire out of heaven to destroy his enemies, not once but twice (II Kings 1:10,12)?  Elijah.

At the end of days, these two mighty witnesses and the 144,000 chosen from every tribe of Israel will lead the nation of Israel back to the Lord.  That will be a day I would like to see, but as Pastor Gene pointed out, that will probably be from heaven.  At that time the age of the gentile church has been fulfilled and God will once again extend His infinite mercy to his chosen people.  Oh Halellujah, praise God, that'll be the day!