THEY KNEW HE WAS THE CHRIST
But the Jews rejected this guy from Galilee!
THE WORLD IS DOING THE SAME THING TODAY!
CONTENTS
Introduction: Time…………………………………………………………….
Chapter 1: In the beginning………………………………………………
Chapter 2: Proof the time is NOW!…………………………………..
Chapter 3: This can’t be Him!……………………………………….
Chapter 4: A conversation with Gamaliel……………………….
Chapter 5: THE CONSIDERATION AND CONVERSATION………………..
Chapter 6: If we accept Him, we will lose!………………………..
Chapter 7: We are done with Him!…………………………………..
Chapter 8: We are doing the same thing today!
Introduction
Is it really time for the Messiah to come?
Yes, it is. But where is He?
TIME! Isn’t it interesting how it seems to take forever for a boring speech to end, or a game our team is losing to be over, yet when it comes to delightful experiences, like fun times with the love of your life, or of seeing your child playing a competitive sport where he or she is the reason they won, the time flies by and the moment is gone before we can fully enjoy it!
I point this out to help us get a better grasp, or understanding of what was happening in the days of Jesus’s entrance into the human world.
From the book of Genesis through the last book in what we call the Old Testament, Malachi, the writers talk about a Savior who will come into the world and will deliver sinful mankind from the punishment of their actions. The Jewish Rabbis who spent their time in studying the scriptures and calculating the times in which they lived, were in great expectation of the coming of the Messiah! Really?
Let me show you why they were. Think back on your life, the important events, like the birth of one of your children, or the passing of a grandparent; how about your graduation day, or when you met the person who became the love of your life, do you remember that day as if it happened yesterday, or even a few minutes ago? YES, you and I do!
Okay, let us set the stage. Some of the older members of the religious elite in Jerusalem remembered the event as if it happened yesterday, and the younger ones had heard the story so many times that it was as if they too had been there.
I can just imagine that Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea, good friends, were having that same discussion, the one they had often been having of late. It always started with this phrase: “Well, it has been 30 years!”
You see, in the Jewish community, a teacher or religious leader had to wait until he was 30 years old before he was allowed to teach or speak in the Synagogues with authority, and it had now been 30 years since the circumcision of that baby that everyone was talking about who had suddenly appeared in the temple, and then disappeared in the crowds with his parents. Two witnesses who were there, confirmed it and spoke about it for the rest of their lives, Simeon, a most righteous and devout man from Jerusalem, and a prophetess by the name of Anna, both confirmed that this child was the Messiah. And in retrospect, Nicodemus said, “Remember the stories about the shepherds who saw a great light and Angles singing about His birth about a week earlier in Bethlehem?” It is time for Him to appear! But where is He?
This teacher everyone is talking about can’t be Him, This Jesus is from Galilee, not Bethlehem!
That is what this book is about, “Is Jesus the prophesied Jewish Messiah?”
CHAPTER 1
IN THE BEGINNING
Except for God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, or as we know them, the Holy Trinity, everything has a beginning and an end. With our finite minds we cannot comprehend the concept of having always existed, yet that is what the Bible says about God. Therefore, what does it mean when it says, “in the beginning?”
I don’t know if you have ever thought about this, but God the creator had, and still does have a plan for His creation known as Mankind. What He planned and created was a being, made in His image, His likeness, with His righteousness, with whom He could communicate, could talk about what their latest findings were, or what they had discovered on and in the home He had created for them. God has never changed His mind or plan. He will have a wonderful perfect relationship with His created one, mankind, and will live and thrive with Him for all of eternity in the new Heaven and the new earth!
In the world in which we live, eternity is a concept that is something our finite minds cannot truly comprehend, because as I stated in the introduction, we live in a world of time, of beginnings and endings, of youthful activities and aged lives much different than what they used to be, and in anticipation of that glorious day when we leave this life of pain and disappointments and spent our lives in unending love with our creator and our beloved ones who graduated to Glory before us! So, the idea of a beginning must have to do with something our Creator did to start the journey of mankind, and then to see it through to its completion. Let us look at that scripture again in a new light.
Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
This is a time before Adam and Eve. To destroy this evil, brought about by the rebellion of Lucifer and 1/3rd of the angels, God caused a great flood that destroyed the earth and brought on the Ice Age. RE: Pr. 8:22-23; Acts 15:18; Eph. 3:9; Col. 1:18; Heb. 1:10; 11:3; John1:1; Rev. 1:8; 3:14
Genesis 1:2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
After this judgement, God rejuvenates the earth with words! (Did you know we can do the same with our lives, just with words? We will talk about that later!)
Genesis 1:3 And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.
From this verse through the 25th verse we see what God the creator did to prepare a home for His new creation, mankind, as we know it today. Only after the habitation was prepared, God does an amazing thing!
Genesis1:26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
There is so much in these verses to unpack, it may take the rest of the book just to do it! But we will take this a little at a time.
Here is an interesting note about the process God used. This is a picture of what a Jewish marriage proposal was to be. Here is the procedure. First the groom to be went to the home of the bride to be and got permission to marry the daughter from her father. They became what was called espoused, and to break that agreement would take a divorce. Watch what happens next. The groom returns to his father’s home and begins building an addition that would become the new home of the bride and groom. Or in other words he prepared a place for her to live with him! Wow, God created a place for His creation to live, with Him, where everything they would need for living would be provided!
On another note, the father of the groom would not allow him to bring his bride until the new home was finished and met his, the father’s, approval. Only then would the father allow the bride to come to live.
Only after God had created everything the new couple, He was going to create, would need for a well provided life, did He bring them into being, or give them life!
Now let’s read on.
Genesis 1:27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
Only after He had created a place for Man, did He create Man, male and female, (please note, Man is used as a definition of a specific created being, like a wolf, or a giraffe, or any other creature with the definition of male or female to be separate.) All the attributes of the male and the female are in God, so He created Man as Himself! We will see how He separated the male and female for a specific purpose. Notice how He refers to this new creation as THEM even though at this time, physically, they were one person.
Genesis 1:28 And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.
At this time all creatures, man included, had a vegetarian diet. That would change after the flood of Noah’s time, when God said.
Genesis 9:3 Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat for you; even as the green herb have I given you all things.
Now let’s continue with the narrative.
Genesis 1:29 And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.
Genesis 1:30 And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so.
Genesis 1:31 And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.
Now comes the day of rest.
Genesis 2:2 And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.
Genesis 2:3 And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.
The creation story is a picture of the world’s history given in advance. As a loving father, He tells us what is going to happen so we can prepare for it and tells us what will happen if we are obedient, and if we are disobedient.
Blessings for obedience
Deuteronomy 28:1 And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the LORD thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth:
Please read verses 1-14 for a complete list of the blessings of obedience.
Curses for Disobedience
Deuteronomy 28:15 But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day; that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee:
Please read verses 15-68 for a list of the results of disobedience.
Let’s look at the timeline, as this is important for the entrance of the Messiah, at His first and second coming.
How long Adam and Eve lived in Paradise, or the Garden of Eden before they sinned, is not known. However, according the Dakes Bible commentary, from the exodus of Eden to the flood of Noah’s day was 1656 years. (Genesis 3:22-8:14) You can follow the genealogies in 1 Chronicles, chapter 1 and Luke chapter 3. This is called the dispensation of conscience, or the people knew what they were to do, and how they were to live to honor God, but they refused to do it. And then came the flood and all were killed but for the 8 souls in Noah’s Ark.
Now from the flood to the calling of Abram was estimated to be 427 years, (Genesis4:14-8:14). We live in the final dispensation which started with Noah entering the Ark with those who would be saved until the start of the Millennium.
Why did they study all this early history when what they wanted to know would not occur for hundreds of years, almost 2000 years? Because that is what the Israelite priests did daily. They searched the scriptures, they read the psalms, the proverbs, the writings of the prophets and teachers, trying to discern the time of the Messiah’ s coming. They had it down to the exact year, but they could not accept this Jesus guy, because he didn’t come in the way they wanted! In the next chapter we will explore this more deeply.
CHAPTER 2
Proof the time is NOW!
-3 AD Birth of Jesus.
+9 AD Jesus trip to Jerusalem, questioning the Priests.
27 AD Jesus starts His ministry.
30 AD death and resurrection of Jesus and return to Heaven.
There were some errors in the Georgian calendar established in 1582 AD, that confuse the date of Jesus’ birth. It appears that the date, which is what the division of time is based on, was set 3-4 years later than it when Jesus’ birth occurred. For simplicities sake most scholars simply set the date as 3 years before AD.
I love the way God in His mercy works His plans around our mistakes.
This is just one of the date setting issues that have established errors we live with today. This, however, is not as important as the fact that the Jews and some other “seekers” believed that a new king of the Jews was to be born about this time in history, and that he would save mankind from the evils in the world and the evil men that were trying to rule over all mankind. (Matthew 2:1-2)
Matthew 2:1 Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem,
Matthew 2:2 Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.
Let’s look at what the rulers of Judaism said. This is amazing!!
Matthew 2:3 When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.
Matthew 2:4 And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born.
Matthew 2:5 And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet,
Matthew 2:6 And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people, Israel.
And here is the prophecy they quoted and believed!
Micah 5:2 But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.
Back to the priests of Jesus’ day. Although there are many references prophesying the deliverance of a Messiah, from the book of Genesis on, one of the most amazing and exciting is from the book of Isaiah.
Isaiah 7:14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
This book was written between 739 and 681 B.C, therefore about 7 centuries before Jesus’ birth, and the priests were very familiar with this promise from God as well as so many others, although not of the Jewish faith, nevertheless studied the writings with interest. But as with all of us, it was just something that was going to happen someday, but who knows when? That time in history was like the current generation, our generation. We know that the “taking away” of the people of God, also known as the rapture of the Christian Church, can and will happen shortly! How do we know this? By reading the prophecies and seeing how they coordinate with current events. Look what Jesus told the people of His generation.
Matthew 16:3 And in the morning, It will be foul weather today: for the sky is red and lowring. O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times?
Let us look at this in real life. The people, not just a few, but all the people, the lower class and the higher class had seen and heard of the miracles performed by Jesus. They saw the multitudes following Him, not our religious leaders! Maybe he is the messiah! No way! And here is why we can’t accept Him!
John 11:47 Then gathered the chief priests and the Pharisees a council, and said, What do we? for this man doeth many miracles.
John 11:48 If we let him thus alone, all men will believe on him: and the Romans shall come and take away both our place and nation.
Interesting note. Their nation was taken away from them 40 years later because they would not accept their Messiah, the one who could and will save their nation!!
John 11:49 And one of them, named Caiaphas, being the high priest that same year, said unto them, Ye know nothing at all,
John 11:50 Nor consider that it is expedient for us, that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish not.
John 11:51 And this spake he not of himself: but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus should die for that nation;
John 11:52 And not for that nation only, but that also he should gather together in one the children of God that were scattered abroad.
John 11:53 Then from that day forth they took counsel together for to put him to death.
Can you see how they justified their actions? They believed that it was better for Jesus to die then for them to lose their nation and positions! Or another thought. Perhaps some of them believed, as Judas Iscariot did, that if they put Jesus in a position where He will do what they wanted, or die, then maybe they will get what they want! To validate that thought, look what a passerby said while Jesus was on the cross and about to die!
Matthew 27:39 And they that passed by reviled him, wagging their heads,
Matthew 27:40 And saying, Thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days, save thyself. If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross.
Matthew 27:41 Likewise also the chief priests mocking him, with the scribes and elders, said,
Matthew 27:42 He saved others; himself he cannot save. If he be the King of Israel, let him now come down from the cross, and we will believe him.
Matthew 27:43 He trusted in God; let him deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said, I am the Son of God.
We do the same thing so many times when in pain or difficulties. We say, “Do what I want, in my way, then I will believe in you!”
Nothing changes in this world! What was done in the Garden of Eden, we do today when we deny Him or want to replace Him with ourselves.
CHAPTER 3
HE HAS ARRIVED! NO, THAT CAN’T BE HIM!
When we look at what was happening in the region before Jesus’ entrance, it is understandable why people would doubt Him.
…Some time ago, Theudas rose up, claiming to be somebody, and about four hundred men joined him. He was killed, all his followers were dispersed, and it all came to nothing.” Acts 5:36
“After him, Judas the Galilean appeared in the days of the census and drew away people after him. He too perished, and all his followers were scattered.” Acts 5:37
Some other potential false Messiahs from scripture are: Bar-Jesus/Elymas the sorcerer in Acts 13:6-12; Simon Magus from Acts 8:9-24; and Barabbas, who among his other crimes is listed insurrection against Rome (Luke 23:19-20.)
Christ also warns there will be many false Messiahs to come, some of which would use His own Name to deceive others and claim to be Christ Himself (Matt 13:6-22, Matt 24:5-17, Mark 13:6-22.)
We can see why the people of that time were skeptical of this “new” Messiah. It may have been the reason Jesus did not want the people to make Him known until the time was right.
But here is the way Jesus was different, He gave the proof of who He was before announcing Himself as the Son of God. He healed the sick, cast out demons and raised the dead, giving these signs as proof of His divinity rather than claiming he was someone, as the false prophets did, and still do to this day! Are you aware that we, as the body of Christ, in His name, are supposed to be doing the same things, and even more that Jesus did, to promote of the gospel! The question is, are we?
In my article titled “Christianity isn’t Kentucky Fried Chicken!”, which you can read on my website, rejoicetoday.com, I deal with the issue of what the body of Christ is or should be doing in spreading the Good News of salvation and deliverance through Jesus, today. With the falling numbers of membership and attendance in our churches today, why are we not seeking answers from a spiritual standpoint instead of a marketing view? However, their real problem was power and control! The religious leaders felt it was their duty to put down anyone who didn’t believe as they did. Look what they said.
Matthew 21:45 And when the chief priests and Pharisees had heard his parables, they perceived that he spake of them.
Matthew 21:46 But when they sought to lay hands on him, they feared the multitude, because they took him for a prophet.
Jesus in answering their questions put away all their people controlling traditions, and said what was important.
Matthew 22:36 Master,(tell us) which is the great commandment in the law?
Matthew 22:37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
Matthew 22:38 This is the first and great commandment.
Matthew 22:39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
Matthew 22:40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
Mat 26:3 Then assembled together the chief priests, and the scribes, and the elders of the people, unto the palace of the high priest, who was called Caiaphas,
Matthew 26:4 And consulted that they might take Jesus by subtilty, and kill him.
Matthew 26:5 But they said, Not on the feast day, lest there be an uproar among the people.
CHAPTER 4
A CONVERSATION BETWEEN THE HIGH PRIEST, THE COUNCIL OF RELIGIOUS LEADERS, AND GAMALIEL
Here is what the Bible says about this time after 3 things had occurred.
- Jesus had risen from the dead.
- His disciples had been in an upper room praying until filled with the Holy Spirit.
- They then went out preaching and healing people with the power from on high.
The religious leaders were upset and had them arrested!
Acts 5:26 Then went the captain with the officers, and brought them without violence: for they feared the people, lest they should have been stoned.
Acts 5:27 And when they had brought them, they set them before the council: and the high priest asked them,
Acts 5:28 Saying, Did not we straitly command you that ye should not teach in this name? and, behold, ye have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine, and intend to bring this man’s blood upon us.
Acts 5:29 Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men.
Acts 5:30 The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree.
Acts 5:31 Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.
Acts 5:32 And we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him.
Acts 5:33 When they heard that, they were cut to the heart, and took counsel to slay them.
Acts 5:34 Then stood there up one in the council, a Pharisee, named Gamaliel, a doctor of the law, had in reputation among all the people, and commanded to put the apostles forth a little space;
Acts 5:35 And said unto them, Ye men of Israel, take heed to yourselves what ye intend to do as touching these men.
Acts 5:36 For before these days rose up Theudas, boasting himself to be somebody; to whom a number of men, about four hundred, joined themselves: who was slain; and all, as many as obeyed him, were scattered, and brought to nought.
Act 5:37 After this man rose up Judas of Galilee in the days of the taxing, and drew away much people after him: he also perished; and all, even as many as obeyed him, were dispersed.
Act 5:38 And now I say unto you, Refrain from these men, and let them alone: for if this counsel or this work be of men, it will come to nought:
Act 5:39 But if it be of God, ye cannot overthrow it; lest haply ye be found even to fight against God.
Act 5:40 And to him they agreed: and when they had called the apostles, and beaten them, they commanded that they should not speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go.
Act 5:41 And they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name.
Act 5:42 And daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ.
Now, please allow me to take some literary license and look behind the curtain, if you will.
CHAPTER 5
THE CONSIDERATION AND CONVERSATION.
Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus met privately with Gamaliel to discuss Jesus and His followers. Nicodemus spoke first.
“We all know what happened when Theudas started a rebellion, and when Judas of Galilee did the same, and that, at least in part, is why the rulers have stood up so strongly against Jesus of Nazareth. Yet I have personally met Jesus. I have not only talked to him but have followed his ministry and I am convinced that he has been sent by Jehovah God as the Messiah to save us, God’s own people, from the Romans! From a prophetic perspective, now is the time! You know this as well as I, Messiah is supposed to be here now!
The time is now if the prophetic word means anything! Why can’t the leaders accept him? I just don’t understand!”
Joseph answered. “Oh friend, I, like you, have spent my life studying the scriptures and considering the history of the reports we received about a baby being consecrated to the Lord, the witnesses who saw it claiming that this baby was the Messiah, what 30 some years ago! It seems like it happened yesterday, it is so burned into my mind, and I remember that 12-year-old boy, about 20 or so years ago, who came into the temple and stayed with us for 3 days, discussing the law and the prophets before his parents came and took him home. And now we have this Jesus showing up, doing all the things it was prophesied the Messiah would do, yet none of the Sanhedrin will accept him!”
“I believe him for what he is doing, but I must admit, I don’t feel like throwing all that I have worked for in my faith aside to stand with him and abandon the position I have worked so long for, and the acceptance and honor I receive!”
Gamaliel had been sitting quietly listening to his friends, then after a thoughtful silence, he responded.
“I understand, and to a degree, I agree with you both. After all, we have grown older, having heard the stories about his mother being found pregnant before her marriage to his father, Joseph, so according to our beliefs and tradition, she should have been stoned to death. But suddenly Joseph completed the marriage agreement, and they became husband and wife. The way I see it, either Jesus of Nazareth is a bastard child, or the Son of God! Here is why.”
With that said, Gamaliel took a scroll and read something he had been studying for some time, ever since Jesus came on the scene.
Isaiah 7:14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
“If I am reading this correctly when the Messiah comes to earth it will be through a virgin, and the conception will be a Holy event orchestrated by God Himself!”
“I keep looking at everything about this Jesus, and it all fits exactly with hundreds of prophecies in our scriptures! So how can he not be our Messiah? My problem is that I thought the Messiah would come through the priestly line of Levi, not Judah! I thought he would come on the scene and kick the Romans out of our country! I thought he would make Jerusalem the capital of the world! I thought all these things would happen in my lifetime! This Jesus has not come as a world ruler, but as a servant, serving the people, then I saw this scripture.”
Isaiah 53:2 For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him.
Isaiah 53:3 He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
Isaiah 53:4 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
Isaiah 53:5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
Isaiah 53:6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
Isaiah 53:7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.
Isaiah 53:8 He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.
Isaiah 53:9 And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.
Isaiah 53:10 Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.
Isaiah 53:11 He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
Isaiah 53:12 Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.
“I believe one of two things are happening. First, Jesus is no different than the false leaders we have already discussed, and his followers will be dispersed after he is killed! Or he is the Messiah and will fulfill all the prophecies of scripture! As I follow his ministry, I can see him fulfilling them in order! If I am correct, he will have to die to pay for our sins, but God will resurrect him and take him to Heaven as our savior and advocate?”
“Look, all these thousands of years, all the disobedience, all the sacrifices, to cover our sins, all waiting for a Savior who will pay for our sins in full, so no more covering or sacrifices, because the sin debt will be paid in full!”
“So, is Jesus the one we have been waiting for? I think so, but all we can do now is wait and see! Will he die in our place, and will God raise him from the dead?
There was a long pause as each of them considered the conversation, and THE MAN, Jesus. Then Joseph broke the silence. “I think you are right. We will have to wait and see.”
Nicodemus, nodding agreed, then said, “Let’s pray that Jehovah will confirm His word, one way or the other. We need our Savior, and we need Him now!”
And so, the discussions and questions continued while Jesus ministered as He was instructed to by His Father.
And, really, are these not the same arguments that take place today?
We see people of all beliefs having similar opinions and questions based not on what the Bible says, but on what they want to believe for their own self-aggrandizement! They seem to see their world, the world they live in as being the only reality!
Look at the Bible’s organized history, or look at the world’s history, and you will see the actual reality!
Let’s take a trip through history from the beginning.
- Genesis 1:1 God created, (actually re-created), the world.
Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
We are not told the story here of what happened, but in later writings, we are informed of a creation of beings that were under the rule of Lucifer, the anointed Cherib. Then due to rebellion, God destroyed the earth and its inhabitants with a worldwide flood. Then the world was-
Genesis 1:2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
The word “was” in the Hebrew, in other verses in the Bible such as Genesis 19:26 and in Genesis 2:7 was translated “became”. So, let’s read it that way.
Genesis 1:2 And the earth became without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
As to how much time elapsed for all this to occur, we are not told, so speculation is fruitless.
Then, God began the second creation of the earth and its inhabitants.
From the 3rd verse through the 25th verse we see God creating a perfect world or environment in which He would place His special creation, one who would and could communicate with Him. One who would walk with Him and talk with Him, and who would be His under-ruler of this perfect world. Have you ever thought about all the rest of God’s creation, not having a choice, but doing exactly what they were “programed” to do? Each of them has a purpose and are made to perform that task, or purpose. Not so with man!
God’s great plan was to make a being that was just a bit lower that Himself and to give to them the ability to create new and exciting things within certain bounds. So, He did!
Chapter 6
If we accept Him, we will lose!
A young man in training to become a priest was sitting on the outside steps leading up to the Temple, in deep meditation when am older priest, one of his teachers, sat down beside him. He didn’t say anything, just looked at the young man, waiting—
Finally, the younger turned his head, looked at his teacher as said, “I don’t understand!” “Here we are, the present and future leaders of Israel, Almighty God’s people, waiting for, and prophesying about the Messiah coming in our lifetime to save God’s people, and when one comes along, doing all the things the Messiah is supposed to do, we are plotting to kill him! I don’t understand!”
The teacher paused a moment then answered the lad with carefully chosen words.
“I can understand your frustration, but you must understand that my generation, as well as other generations before us, have experienced false, so-called prophets, come on the scene, promising miracles, gathering multiples of followers, but were eventually proven to be false prophets. So, we are careful about who we will believe.”
The student had to make his point! “Yes teacher, I have heard all about the false prophets, and I understand your position, but you have carefully taught us when we have questions to “search the Scriptures”, and I have! The false prophets made up stories and some of the uneducated people followed them, hoping and some even believing that this one was the Messiah. And it turned out that they were not.”
“But this Jesus is for real! I was there when he healed the cripple by the pool of Beth-za’tha! I knew the man! I always felt sorry for him, but then I saw Jesus talking to him and suddenly Jesus said to him, sort of ordered him, saying, “Rise, take up your pallet and walk!’ and he was instantly healed! I saw him with my own eyes! I have heard some many stories about other people he healed, and I have sat and listened to him when he talked here in the temple, and I can tell you this Jesus is not a false prophet, I believe he is the real thing! He is the Messiah! I believe it!”
“Sir, you have been telling us from the first day I started my studies to become a priest like you, and dedicated my life and my future, to serving Almighty God, Jehovah, that we are living in the time of the appearance of our Messiah. I have heard all the stories of the dedication of a baby from Bethlehem around 30 years ago, and all the other stories that point to him coming in this year, in fact one of the biggest reasons for me desiring to become a priest is I wanted to be in a position to acknowledge Him and serve Him for the rest of my life, and the leaders want to kill Him!?”
“I don’t understand!”
The teacher sat for a moment digesting the words of his student, then said almost without thinking, “You have almost convinced me!”
“But, if he is the anointed one that Jehovah has sent to us, why didn’t he come through the tribe of Levi? Why isn’t he using his almighty power to drive the Romans out of Jerusalem? Why isn’t he freeing our people from the rule of Rome? Why? Why? Why isn’t he doing what we want done with our nation? I don’t understand!”
After a pause the teacher came to a conclusion. “Maybe Caiaphas was right when we were discussing this Jesus:
John 11:49 And one of them, named Caiaphas, being the high priest that same year, said unto them, Ye know nothing at all,
John 11:50 Nor consider that it is expedient for us, that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish not.
John 11:51 And this spake he not of himself: but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus should die for that nation;
John 11:52 And not for that nation only, but that also he should gather together in one the children of God that were scattered abroad.
“ Maybe, but I guess we will see in time as we see the future unfold.”
The teacher and the student arose and went their separate ways contemplating what the future might be concerning this Jesus.
CHAPTER 7
We are done with him!
“What a time to be alive! Here we have been waiting for all these years, all these generations, and finally, our Messiah arrives! I believe he will restore Jerusalem and all of Israel to the glory we had in the past! I believe he will chase the Romans out of Israel, all of them! Every soldier, every governmental leader, all of them! Kick them out! I want to see our Messiah rule and reign over God’s land, Israel! NOW! And as a devout Jew, I know that Messiah will appoint me to a great position in his government! I know it and believe it!”
The man speaking these words was a devout Jew and didn’t care who heard him because he just knew this Jesus had to be the Messiah! “The time was right, and I am ready, as is all Jewry!”
Put yourself in their shoes. They had not had a prophet rise up to comfort and guide them in over 400 years! But the last one gave them a promise and they remembered it.
Malachi 4:3 And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the LORD of hosts.
Malachi 4:4 Remember ye the law of Moses my servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments.
Malachi 4:5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD:
And what did John the Baptist say when asked?
John 1:19 And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou?
John 1:20 And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Christ.
John 1:21 And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias, (Elijah)? And he saith, I am not. Art thou that prophet? And he answered, No.
John 1:22 Then said they unto him, Who art thou? that we may give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself?
John 1:23 He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias, (Elijah).
John 1:24 And they which were sent were of the Pharisees.
John 1:25 And they asked him, and said unto him, Why baptizest thou then, if thou be not that Christ, nor Elias, (Elijah), neither that prophet?
John 1:26 John answered them, saying, I baptize with water: but there standeth one among you, whom ye know not;
John 1:27 He it is, who coming after me is preferred before me, whose shoe’s latchet I am not worthy to unloose.
John 1:28 These things were done in Bethabara beyond Jordan, where John was baptizing.
Then they heard these words from Jesus!
Matthew 17:10 And his disciples asked him, saying, Why then say the scribes that Elias (Elijah) must first come?
Matthew 17:11 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Elias, (Elijah), truly shall first come, and restore all things.
Matthew 17:12 But I say unto you, That Elias, (Elijah), is come already, and they knew him not, but have done unto him whatsoever they listed. Likewise shall also the Son of man suffer of them.
Matthew 17:13 Then the disciples understood that he spake unto them of John the Baptist.
So now, the people from the lowest rung of society to the highest positions of authority in religion, education, and government, which in many ways are the same even today, had seen or at least had heard of all the miracles that Jesus performed in Jewry, and only in Jewry! They knew this Jesus had proven Himself to be the Messiah, without question, yet “He has not delivered us from the Romans! Isn’t that what the Scriptures say He will do?”
In our day we are doing the same thing they did! We reason according to our understanding of God’s word. Really!! Yes! We have people who believe that God’s people, the followers of Jesus, will be caught up, or raptured out of this world so we will not have to suffer through the 7 year tribulation which will come upon the world before the return of Jesus. I am one of them. Others believe there will be a “mid-tribulation” rapture, and others believe in a ”post tribulation rapture.” Each belief has Scriptures to “prove” their point of view. One of the things I try to encourage my readers to do is to read all the Scriptures in context, not taking one Scripture in one book of the Bible and attach it to another Scripture that seems to prove your opinion. Paul had to deal with this kind of misunderstand in the church in Thessalonica. Look how the Bible answers their questions.
1 Thessalonians 4:13 But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.
1 Thessalonians 4:14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.
1 Thessalonians 4:15 For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.
1 Thessalonians 4:16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
1 Thessalonians 4:17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
1 Thessalonians 4:18 Wherefore comfort one another with these words.
And for conformation read the following.
1 Thessalonians 5:9 For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,
1 Thessalonians 5:10 Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.
Those who believe in a mid-tribulation, or a post tribulation rapture are partially correct, because there will be a second rapture of people who became believers during the 7-year tribulation toward the end, to keep them from the final horror.
Matthew 24:29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:
Matthew 24:30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
Matthew 24:31 And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
Getting back to the Cross, here is what the people who felt that Jesus had not kept His word shouted!
WE ARE DONE WITH HIM!
Matthew 27:39 And they that passed by reviled him, wagging their heads,
Matthew 27:40 And saying, Thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days, save thyself. If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross.
Matthew 27:41 Likewise also the chief priests mocking him, with the scribes and elders, said,
Matthew 27:42 He saved others; himself he cannot save. If he be the King of Israel, let him now come down from the cross, and we will believe him.
Matthew 27:43 He trusted in God; let him deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said, I am the Son of God.
Matthew 27:44 The thieves also, which were crucified with him, cast the same in his teeth.
Those who believed on Jesus were devastated when they saw Him crucified!
They would not accept Jesus as the Messiah because He didn’t do what they wanted done on their timeline!
They should have done then as we are to do now, that is to follow the way of Jesus.
Matthew 26:39 And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.
CHAPTER 8
We are doing the same thing today!
I never thought in my lifetime I would see what is happening to our culture, our country and our freedoms!
I was born April 22, 1940, to a farming family outside of Sanborn, Minnesota. Shortly after I turned 3, my parents while attending a revival meeting at their Church, turned their lives over to God and moved to Saint Paul Minnesota to attend St. Paul Bible School for 3 years.
Dad’s first Church was outside of Hinton, Iowa, I was 6 years old when he was assigned to that body of believers.
From the years of being a pastor’s son and even after I left home, my training and living were all about how blessed we were to have been born in America and living in the grace of God! And we prayed for people who lived in war-torn countries and under atheistic dictators. Never once did we think that kind of thinking and national dictates would ever come here to America!
Welcome to the new world!
During the 1970’s, when our children were in school, I had several serious disputes with their teachers when their teaching became ungodly and self-centered. It was during that time that I became very involved in not allowing the new “busing” of our children all over town to have an equal number of children from each ethnic group in each school. My argument was that the program would shut the parents out of having a say in what their children were being taught, and as president of our PTA, I felt that would be detrimental to all children regardless of their race or color. We defeated the busing plan locally but lost an appeal in a court in St. Louis Missouri. Soon after that decision they started busing the children, which was of course very disruptive to the family lives of the children and their parents. We avoided living in that disaster by moving to a smaller community that didn’t have busing.
Interestingly, 20 years later, the North Omaha community leaders who had pushed so hard for “equality” or busing, saw what had happened and rebelled against forced busing using the same arguments that I had used 20 years before! The school board and the community decided that instead of forced busing they would allow students to attend the school of their choice.
Let us look at a few of the things that those who want to be the god of themselves have done, to remove and reject the one and only Almighty God.
- Remove God from our schools.
Most people were never taught the history of American schools! Are you aware of the fact that the first schools were established by the Christian Church? And the first textbook was the King James Bible!
We began each school day by facing the American Flag, placing our right hand over our heart and said in unison:
“I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”
Did you notice the words, “one nation under God”? A prayer was spoken before events, especially before games and graduation ceremonies! The Biblical Ten Commandments were displayed as a guide to godly living! Thank God, the governor of Louisiana recently got it approved to put them up in their schools again! We can only pray that the other states will follow suit!
- Christmas displays are no longer allowed on public land in many states.
- The so-called leaders in government, education and some businesses, state emphatically that the first amendment to our constitution prohibits them from allowing Christianity being promoted by the government. They obviously have never read, nor do they understand the first amendment! So here it is in print.
- Did you notice that congress, or government, cannot set up a national religion?
I agree, I don’t want a government ordained religion forced on me!
But now read the reverse!
- Did you notice that congress, or government, may not prohibit the free exercise of same!
So don’t try to stop me from practicing my religion either!
Have you ever noticed that the people who want to change the world to fit their ideas, start by pleading with the majority to “please allow us to express our opinions, after all, we are a free country, and we have freedom of speech!” But once they get a following (10% of the population is their goal), they change their tone and demand to, “Do it our way or we will riot, rebel, threaten you, burn down your homes and businesses and make your lives a living hell, watch us!”
Those who do not study history are doomed to repeat it! God says so.
Deuteronomy 28:1 And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the LORD thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth:
I added this scripture again, because if you will read the Bible, or even secular history, you will find that when the people live by and follow God’s laws, or way of living, good things happen! When people rebel, a curse comes on them and amazingly, they blame God, not themselves!
Why do people do these dumb things! Don’t they see the results of ungodly living?
PRIDE!
From the beginning of mankind until the present day, problems begin and continue when mankind refuse to let God be God, because he/she wants to be God of their lives, which brings us back to the beginning of this book.
The people in Jesus’ day wanted Him to do and be what they wanted, not what God had ordained for His glory and their good! When He didn’t do things their way, they, the people who had shouted “Hosana to the highest”, when He rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, shouted, “crucify him!”
In closing, let me recommend that you deny self and accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior! He alone can and will forgive you of your sins and will accept you into His family for all eternity! It is a simple prayer.
“Lord Jesus, I am a sinner, I ask You to forgive me! I believe you are the Son of God who came to earth and lived a sinless life, then paid the price for my sins on the Cross of Calvery and rose again! Please receive me into the Kingdom of God! Amen”
I say to you, “Welcome home!”