Great Commission of the Church
STUDIES & DOC
The Great Commission of the Chruch?
Gospel
Preached in the Whole World?
By
Your servant, Dan L Baxley
This article is not to dispute what believers and groups of believers have been doing in spreading the Gospel message from generation to generation since the first century. But it is to question what is really said and to look at the prophetic nature of this preaching and teaching. Looking a second and third time about what our Lord said to His disciples almost 2,000 years ago. The work of men
Or Lord and Savior, YaHshua, said something to His disciples that became
a focus of the Church and caused many believers to join into groups and to
follow men inflamed with this idea about preaching the Gospel to the world, but has it been the aim Preach about the coming Kingdom of God, or to seek salvation through repentance?
Over the past decades a few differing Christian groups have made this
their mantra, “Preach the Gospel to the whole world”. This has
been taken as a kind of command or duty of the Church. The idea is,
then, that once this is accomplished the “end would come”.
With all sincerity this has become an act of forcing the God of Heaven to
send His Son back, as promised, if the Church can accomplish this
task. But is this really what our Lord, YaHshua, said? Did He
really make this a commission of the Church?
Let’s have a look, first at what He said, and what He did not say, and
how this is possibly not something the Church should be trying to do –
deliberately trying to make prophecy happen in order to force our Creator’s
hand. Of course those attempting this do not see it this way. But what if
this Gospel these different groups teach is NOT the Gospel of the Kingdom our
Lord YaHshua and his original Disciples taught?
(Mat 24:14-15) And this
gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all
nations, and then the end will come. So when
you see standing in the holy place 'the abomination that causes desolation,'
spoken of through the prophet Daniel--let the reader understand-- NIV
Read the above
verses carefully – YaHshua is telling disciples that the end will
come, when? When the Gospel is preach to the whole world
– for emphasis -- in the whole world, right?
To take this reding in an
absolute and literal sense we have to admit one thing: Never in the history of
mankind has this preching of the Gospel to the Whole World been possible until these modern times. Today, and on into the
future with the advances in media technology – the internet, and cell phones, and satellite TV with the ability to broadcast around the world in real time to every mega
city, and town, and the smallest of villages. Make not mistake, even the poorest of
villages has a community tv -- villages around the world have television and
cell phones and internet connections, growing in this technology by leaps and
bounds while still living in substandard conditions. I know that
at our website alone we received emails from all over the world and from some of
the most remote places.
But is that the answer – is that what our Savior
meant? Let’s read it again, this time without the verse break and from more than one translation –
From the
KJV, YaHshua Speaks:
And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come. When you therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso reads, let him understand:)
From the
ESV:
And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. "So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand),
From the NIV:
And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. So when you see standing in the holy place 'the abomination that causes desolation,' spoken of through the prophet Daniel--let the reader understand--
We could go to
other translations as well, and they all say the same thing, with a couple of
variations, which we will get into later. YaHshua
mentions Daniel, and what Daniel had to say in connection with this
preaching of the Gospel – the Book of Daniel is written in Hebrew and
Aramaic.
We should then consult the Hebrew and Aramaic
influenced translations too, in order to get at what is being said.
Hebrew Roots
Version:
(Mat 24:14-15) And this good news of the Kingdom shall be published in all the earth for a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come. And when you see the sign of uncleanness and desolation, that was spoken of by Daniel the prophet, which will stand in the holy place. He that reads let him understand. (Dan. 11:31; Dan. 12:11)
If you are still
with me let’s cut to the point, then we will examine several words choices and
why they are important.
First off, the original prophetic statement by our
Savior, YaHshua, was not broken up by a verse break, as we see in our Bibles and
the context proves this, and when you remove the verse numbers and placement you
get an even flow in the words of our Savior.
The connecting word
in the KJV is “WHEN”, “…when you see…”, and in the
NIV and the ESV version we see the connecting word to be, “So”. Nothing is
changed by the change in these connecting words, both make a direct connect to
what our Savior is saying – “When” you see that the Gospel message about the Kingdom of God being
preached/published to the whole world another element is added that actually
dovetails into what He is saying – there is a warning, a warning that Daniel
spoke of -- So, when you see this
what is the warning He gives us that is connected to an event by which the
“whole world” is hearing about
the Gospel of the Kingdom?
That’s right, the connection is the very next thing
He says, “…when
you see the abomination (of some sort) of desolation
spoken of by the prophet Daniel standing in the Holy PLACE”. It would
seem the timing of this Gospel Message being preached or proclaimed to the whole
world is connected to the event revealed by Daniel. Most have
interpreted this “preaching” to be a long drawn out process, ignoring what Paul
said –
(Rom 10:18) But I ask:
Did they not hear? Of course they did: "Their voice has gone out into all the earth, their words to the ends of
the world." NIV
(Col 1:23) If ye
continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the Gospel, which you have heard,
andwhich was preached to every creature which is under heaven; whereof I Paul am made a
minister; KJV
It would seem that Paul saw
this “proclaiming” or “preaching” to the “whole world” as pretty much
accomplished in his day.
If we take what he is saying to mean just that then
the idea that the Gospel must be published or preached in every single language
on earth is not correct.
Paul certainly knew the Gospel he preached was not
“published” in every single language and dialect of languages on the face of the
earth. He was a pretty smart guy and even says he was “made a minister” to this
Gospel message.
Does anyone deny Paul (Saul) as an Apostle of our
Savior Yahshua?
If we can accept Paul’s words then the words of our
Savior YaHshua have actually been fulfilled. But wait, the words of our Savior
connected this “preaching” of the Gospel of the Kingdom to the whole world to
what Daniel says concerning the “abomination that causes
desolation”.
Certainly Paul knew what our Lord had said, but he
never mentions this, does he? He never connects what he is saying with
what our Lord said.
Why not? A perfect time to point out how true our
Lord YaHshua’s words are, but no, he does not connect the two. YaHshua’s
words are connected to the words of Daniel –
(Dan
12:9-11) And He said, Go your way, Daniel: for the
words are
closed up and sealed till the time of the end. Many
shall be purified, and made white, and tried; but the wicked shall do wickedly:
and none of the wicked shall understand; but the wise shall understand. And from the time that
the daily sacrifice
shall be taken away, and the abomination that makes desolate
set up, there
shall be
a thousand two hundred and ninety days.
Daniel’s words add to the idea
that a Temple has to be rebuilt on the Holy Mount, the Holy Place. Notice, the
words of Daniel are said to be sealed until the “time of the end”. Our Savior
used this same kind of wording, the “Gospel will be preached” and then the end
will come, or the time of the end. The wording is similar and carries what
seems to be the same meaning. YaHshua’s words connect this writing of
Daniel with what He Himself is saying by mentioning the “abomination that makes
(causes) desolate (desolation)”. Then, of course there is the 2,390 days
mentioned that have been driving prophecy students mad for the last couple of
thousand years.
There is every conceivable interpretation and
attempted explanation as to what these 2,300 days mean. To attempt
an explanation is not the purpose of this article/study – suffice it to say that
we are told know one will understand this, or any of this, until the Words are
“unsealed” --
“…for the words are closed up and sealed till the
time of the end” – This would also apply to what we are looking at. Prophecy can
be picked at, rotated around, examined by the greatest of minds but the truth
and the revealing of deeper meanings and events can only be truly understood
after the fact, after they have been fulfilled. This
confounds men and magnifies our God and Father in Heaven – His words and the
Words of His Son and the words of His Apostles are true, but most of all His
words are the ultimate truth and will be proven over and over by the Prophetic
words already delivered and by comparison every man is made a liar. Still, He
does reveal to us bits and pieces to help us grow in His Word and the more we
grow in the Spirit the more He reveals. Read Daniel
again, “…none of the wicked will understand”, and this would mean, if we are not
part of the wicked there will come a day when we will understand and though the
fulfillment will look the wicked in the face, as a witness, they will not see it
but we will, or, at least, our future brothers and sister in YaHshua.
The
Holy Place
The prophetic words
of our Savior do not say the Temple is to be rebuilt, it does not say anything
about the Temple, not a single word, none at all -- this is only assumed by most
Evangelical prophecy teachers, as they teach a Temple must be
rebuilt.
The actual HOLY PLACE is Mount Moriah, the
“place” the Temple once stood but stands no
more – in its place stands the Muslim Mosque known as the Dome of the
Rock. Inside this Mosque it is reported there is a saying written around its
circumference, “God has no son”, or “Allah has not son”, or something similar –
a denial of YaHshua, Son of the Living God having come in the flesh.
(1Jn
2:22) Who is a liar but he that denies that YaHshua
is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denies the Father and the
Son.
When we consider
the Rock over which this Mosques is built is possibly the place Abraham prepared
to sacrifice his own son, Isaac then this becomes a pretty important spot and
then you add to that that our Savior is called the Rock.
(1Co
10:4) And did all drink the same spiritual drink:
for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was
Christ (Messiah).
Not only is YaHshua identified as the Rock of Israel, that it was He,
before coming in the flesh, that did drink of that same spiritual Rock we now
drink from ourselves. It is ironic, isn’t it, that this Muslim
Mosque, a symbol opposed to the Son of God, YaHshua, as our Savior is standing
over an historical Rock on the Holy Mount? Something
more to consider and wonder about. That Mosque has been then some 1,300 plus
years – to the fault of the early Christians they treated this Holy Place with
the greatest of disrespect because all things connected to the Jews, as they saw
it then, was evil, they were the killers of the Christ. It is
reported that the Christians, once in power, used the Mount as a garbage dump to
insult all Jews.
It would seem the Muslims had a greater respect for
this place and once they had control they cleaned it up and constructed the
Mosque, and insult to Jew and Christian alike. It would
seem this was allow and remains all these years because the Muslims were the
only ones to respect this place. Is this the spot where the Temple once
stood? Who knows, the scholars of every kind still argue over where the Temple
of Herod actually stood, let alone the placement of the Temple of
Solomon.
Everyone, it seems, has their own idea, all very
convincing but no absolute or defining answer.
The Dome of the Rock has been there for so long it is difficult to see it
as the “abomination” Daniel spoke of. Still, it is
on the Holy Place and the Gospel message, if modern prophets are correct, has
not been finished.
So, when you see the “abomination standing in the
Holy Place” as the warning the next thing to follow is the preaching and
proclaiming and the publishing of the Gospel of the Kingdom of God to the Whole
world would be next, right?
Preaching
and Proclaiming
The ability to
“proclaim/preach/publish” the message to the whole and entire world is now
possible.
The increase communications technology continues to
advance – TV, the Internet, and cell phones. The computer
and digital age makes it possible to not only to communicate via satellite but
to publish books in digital format that can be reproduced on paper of computer
at such a speed that if this it the method for such a task then it is quite
possible.
But is that what our Savior really meant? Did he
really mean the Gospel as men see it being proclaimed? We have been
given some early warnings about the Gospel and how men handle it. Strong’s
Hebrew Greek Dictionary defines the world used for “preach” in the KJV --
Strong’s Greek Dictionary:
G2784 -- Preached
in the KJV
ke¯russo¯ -- kay-roos'-so
Of uncertain affinity; to herald (as a public crier), especially divine
truth (the gospel): - preach (-er), proclaim, publish.
A Perverted Gospel Preached or Proclaimed?
(Gal 1:6-7) I marvel
that you are so soon removed from Him that called you into the grace of Christ
unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that
trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ.
(note: A perverted
Gospel, a Gospel with all the right characters, and use of the Scriptures but
perverted into what might appear as another Gospel. and another Messiah).
(2Co 11:4) For if he
that comes preaches another YaHshua, whom we have not preached, or
if you receive another spirit, which you have not received, or
another gospel, which you have not accepted, you might well bear with him (or
them).
(John 5:43) I am come in my Father's Name, and yoou receive me not: if another shall
come in his own name, him you will receive.
(Isa 42:8) I am YAHWEH;
that is My name; and I will not give My glory to another, nor My praise to
engraved images.
YaHshua came in the Name of His Father, He has always been in the Name or
representative of our Heavenly Father’s Name. He has been
rejected for another and we know
this because men have given up His true Name for another.
The Apostles preached and proclaimed the name
YaHshua (Joshua in the Old English), not the false name,
“Jesus”.
Preach “another
Savior”, another “gospel”?
How can this be? Paul calls
this other Gospel To see this perversion just look at the name most of
Christianity preach – they preach in a name that never existed until about 400
years ago. They preach “another”, they call him JESUS,
or IESVS and this is not the NAME any of the Apostles preached and
proclaimed.
Not one, not one single Disciple or Apostle of the
first century preached in the name of JESUS but they did proclaim, YaHshua as
Savior as Messiah.
YaHshua is the English transliteration for His
Name. The Old English presented this as JOSHUA, which we clearly see in the
Torah (OT) but when it comes to the New Covenant His Name is
changed.
Another Savior and another Gospel, that is not really
a different message, but a perversion, where the message may remain the same but the names and characters and
place have been changed.
It would be
difficult to understand how the preaching of this “perverted” Gospel would be
the Gospel our Lord Spoke of. The Gospel of the Kingdom of God is to be
proclaimed as a “witness”?
It would hardly seem fitting that a perverted gospel
with a different Savior would be that “witness”.
This is to be a
witness – a witness to the whole
world, remember?
The statement concerning the Holy Place is the
WARNING and appears, in context, to actually be something to happen
first. The end will not come until this until the
preaching/proclaiming/publishing takes place, but the key event before this is
the thing that is called the “abomination”, something that causes a destruction,
a laying waste, of some kind.
Let’s put is like
this, “So when you see the Abomination…then the end will come”? No! it does
not say that, does it.
But this is how it is read by most. It is taught
that the preaching and, or, the
proclaiming of the Gospel message
will happen first, but our Lord tells us the warning comes first -- He gives us
the warning (abomination) and this would have to be something we see happen
before the Worldwide Witness concerning the Gospel message.
The Gospel about
the Kingdom of God will be proclaimed then the end shall come. So, when do
we know this is happening?
YaHshua splices in the timing of this event by the
Daniel prophecy concerning the “abomination that causes
desolation standing in the Holy Place” – previously quoted.
We will go to Daniel in a minute and we will see that
something of an “abomination” is mention in more than one place.
The word, “so”, is
like a heads up of an event to watch for that leads to the previous statement,
like the Daniel prophecy.
We will go to Daniel in a bit and have a look at what
Daniel was shown.
The third word that
needs to be considered is “of”. This word does not appear in the Greek text
and is assumed or placed for an easier read by the translators. Other
translations change this “of” to “causes” but the Hebraic Root Version
rendering, “sign of uncleanness and desolation” and the
Scriptures 1998 version has it as, “abomination that lays waste” these two translations are a lot closer to
what Daniel wrote, the Daniel our Savior is pointing to -- The understanding
from a Hebrew point of view speaks of an “abomination” that “causes” great
distress and lays waste, which is the meaning of “desolation”. It would
seem the English reading would sound better and explain what is being said –
“abomination that causes desolation or lays waste”. Some kind of
destruction and this is closer to the wording of Daniel – what does all of this
mean?
We are looking for
something that will be devastating and it will take place, or be centered at the
Holy Place not “IN”.
The words “place” and “in”. The use of
the word “in” is not in the Greek it is placed there by the translators and is
very suggestive.
If we say “in” we think of some kind of enclosure and
in this case it is assumed to be the Temple. However, the
word “on” or “at” could have been used just as easily and this would change the
meaning away from a Temple having to be rebuilt to meaning the Holy Place itself
which is the place called the Temple mount or Mount Moriah, which is also called
Mount Zion.
The Holy Place is
where the Hebrew Temple once stood but now, for the last 1,400, or so, years
stands a Muslim Mosque.
This alone seems pretty incredible, and guess who
controls the Temple Mount?
That is right, the Muslims. For some
strange (political) reason when the Israelis took control of Jerusalem after the
Muslim nations attack them and Israel beat them back and gained control over
Jerusalem they turned around and handed the Temple Mount over to the
vanquished.
What happened “to the victors go the
spoils”?
Imagine, the people of Israel, claiming the Creator
God as their God, YaHWeH are given victory against all odds and instead of
giving thanks to YaHWeH for the victory they hand over the HOLY PLACE to the
enemy.
Now we have gone in
a complete circle – If we see the Muslim Mosque as the “abomination that causes
desolation” standing on the Holy Place, then we can see the progress of the
Gospel message being preached, proclaimed and published for the last 1400 years
as it progresses to completion. That would make sense, but that is not how
it is taught by the Christian Prophecy teacher. They teach
that we are still looking for the coming of the “abomination that causes
desolation” standing in a rebuilt Temple. But,
according to the wording or our Savior, the thing that “causes desolation or
lays waste” is before the “proclamation” of the Kingdom of God to the whole
world.
If we continue to
consider the Muslim mosque as the offending thing, which causes desolation or
destruction what does this mean then?
Repeating -- It
would mean the Gospel Message is not finished, as most agree with, and until
they finish proclaiming and publishing the Gospel, as they see it, the end will
not come, so if they work hard enough at getting the Gospel into every crook and
cranny of the world they can bring about the coming of the Christ. Some are
preaching this message of evangelizing the world over “so” the sooner they get
that done the sooner the end will come.
What if?
What if, however,
this Gospel message to be proclaimed is actually a single event, not an event
taking thousands of years?
Yes, there has been several Gospels about various
spirit kingdoms over these few thousand years, but are they all the same, are
they the Gospel Message being proclaimed the one or ones referred to by our
Savior?
The Mormons worship
JESUS as savior and preach a different type of Gospel. The
Jehovah’s Witnesses also worship JESUS but teach a different Gospel of the
Kingdom and then there is the Roman Catholic Church and they worship IESUS and
their Gospel about the Kingdom is different also. We have the
Protestant Churches, the daughters of the Roman Church, and the various
Evangelical Churches with their Gospel about a Kingdom of God. Are we then
to say this is what our Savior meant by the Gospel of the Kingdom of God being
preached and published?
It looks like the Roman Catholic Church has the jump
on all of the other Christian groups by a few hundred years, or so it seems to
me.
Back to the other
overlooked idea that our Savior was actually talking about the “end days”
period. What if this Gospel our Savior was talking about is broadcast to the
“whole world” via the internet and cell phones? What if this
witness means just that, not a prolonged effort but a more immediate witness,
proclaiming the Gospel and this following on the heels of the “abomination that
causes desolation, causes waste”?
Enter the two “end
time” witnesses.
Remember, we are talking about the “end days” not the
beginning of the “end days” but THE END DAYS. The
beginning of the “end days” could be said to be all of those days since our Lord
“ascended” into Heaven.
Then the “end will
come”, He said, then – What if the Two Witnesses are the prophetic fulfillment
of our Savior’s words?
A lot is written about every eye seeing these two
prophets of Revelation 11 being killed by the Beast and then seeing them rise
back to life and how this is all possible now because of modern
media. Perhaps it is these two witnesses that deliver the TRUE Gospel of the
Kingdom to the whole world and it is their work that is the fulfillment of our
Lord’s prophecy.
It will be then that we will understand what the
“abomination” is and witness the “desolation” it causes.
Still, before all
of this our Savior gave a message to the Apostle John in Revelation 6:12-17, an
event called the Wrath of the Lamb. Prophecy will not be fully understood until
this great event.
A great earth shaking event – the heavens will appear
to be ending and the earth will shake violently. Many will
mistake this for the “end” but it is only the “beginning” of moving into the
end.
This is not a
comfortable message but one that needs to be understood. Understood
mostly so you do not become one of the Scoffers, questioning by the Lord did not
come after such a violent and tragic event. Think about
it, the earth shakes, not just an earthquake here and there but the whole earth
shakes. The tsunamis that would occur around the world will kill millions,
perhaps billions and survivors will raise a fist at God and curse Him and the
Scoffers, once believers, will cry out, “Where is the promise of His
coming”.
More on this at
this LINK > Great Quake
Oh, yeah, what did
Daniel say?
(Dan 9:27) And he shall
confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he
shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for
the overspreading of abominations he shall make
it desolate,
even until the consummation, and that determined
shall be poured upon the desolate.
KJV
This verse is
argued over but the loudest voices have declared this is all about the coming
Antichrist.
The “he” is thought to be this Beast. A less
popular view is another one of those, “what if” moments. What if this
is actually a prophecy about our Savior. What it the
“he” is HE our Savior?
What if the sacrifice of our Savior, YaHshua, is the
Covenant made for “one prophetic week”? Our Lord was
cut off in the middle of His ministry (3.5 years) and some think the coming two
end time Witnesses will finish that testimony and ministry (3.5 years) finishing
the week of the New Covenant made with many. His
sacrifice and ministry was cut short and when he was rejected by His own people
the “overspreading of abominations” continued and was eventually made
desolate.
The Jews rejected YaHshua and continued one in Temple
worships which was supposed to end with the final Sacrifice. Because of
their rejection the Temple was made desolate and even later, 70 years later, the
City of Jerusalem was itself leveled. YaHshua, by
His sacrifice and going to the cross for us brought an end to the Temple system,
even though the Jews did not accept it God our Father put a stop to it and it is
still in desolation to this very day. Just think
about it.
Be prepared for something different from what most
teach. After all, we may be living in the “falling away”, YaHshua spoke of and
this falling away may have begun in the times of the Apostles. Just read
the book of Acts and you will see not all was as united as some
think. Paul even mentions his frustration at believers taking up sides and
calling themselves after those they admired and followed – while some started
following charismatic leaders Paul said he followed only YaHshua our
Messiah.
(Dan 11:30-32) For the
ships of Chittim shall come against him: therefore he shall be grieved, and
return, and have indignation against the holy covenant: so shall he do; he shall
even return, and have intelligence with them that forsake the holy
covenant.
And arms
shall stand on his part, and they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and
shall take away the daily sacrifice,and they shall place the abomination that makes desolate. And such as do wickedly
against the covenant shall he corrupt by flatteries: but the people that do know
their God shall be strong, and do exploits.
Most see this as the Antichrist and other see this as already fulfilled
by Antiochus Epiphanes in 167 BC when he stormed against Jerusalem on his
return from defeat at the hands of the king from the south, Egypt. These verses
do seem to line up with the actions of Antiochus, in fact, so well that many
critics accused these writings from the book of Daniel to have been written
after the fact.
At any rate, this is seen as either a fulfillment or
a mirror of what the end time Antichrist is to do – some say both, a prophetic
dualism which has not been completely fulfilled so it is destined to be
repeated.
Accepting this as the interpretation, as an image of
the Antichrist, then it is but a short jump to saying the Temple has to be
rebuilt.
According to many Evangelical prophecy teachers (Most
if not all) that the Temple must be rebuilt so the Antichrist can set up an
image in the Temple just as Antiochus did – the image, or statue in the Temple
is then seen as the “abomination”. Either way the word of God is proven again
to be true.
Antiochus did all those things exactly as prerecorded
before he actually did them. This give us a sense that our Creator has a
plan and some men are doomed to follow it. Just as
there was to be a Judas to betray our Savior so others in history have been
selected to accomplish the will of our Creator, all heading toward a final
goal. So, perhaps Antiochus is but a prelude to that man of sin that is to
come. One thing is sure, the words concerning Antiochus in 167 BC were so exact
but never finished.
You can follow the prophecy in the life of Antiochus
only up to a point then the historical fact ends but the prophecy continues.
(Dan 12:9-11) And he said,
Go your way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end. Many shall
be purified, and made white, and tried; but the wicked shall do wickedly: and
none of the wicked shall understand; but the wise shall
understand.
And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abomination that makes desolate set up,
there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days.
Daniel is told the words of his vision are closed up until the “time of
the end”.
Daniel is informed many will be “tried” (tested, made
pure) but that the wicked of the world will continue in their wickedness and not
understand what is happening, but the wise will. Then right
after this remark we have the “daily sacrifice” mentioned and the “abomination”
mentioned and the mysterious 2390 days. This, then,
suggests to the modern prophecy teachers that there must be a Temple rebuilt,
why else would the “daily sacrifice” be mentioned?
What is the key to this verse? “…for the
words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end”. YaHshua said
when we see what Daniel was talking about concerning the “abomination that
causes desolation”, remember? We have seen three references to an
“abomination” but this third
reference is the only one that fits what our Lord said when he commented about
what Daniel wrote.
And in these verses we are told straight up that
these words will not be understood until the “end time”. When is this
End Time, then?
Certainly it was not in the time of Antiochus because
we are still here in the same condition as from before, our Savior has come and
gone and is to come again, and most of us see this “end-time” as a time just
before our Lord returns.
Many things have to happen before this.
Looking into the Book of Revelations for certain events related to this
“end-time” we read about the Two Witnesses preach the Kingdom of God as a
Witness to the whole world, and this is seen as a time following the
“abomination” or the thing that causes the “laying waste”, a
“desolation”.
If we are reading it right this period of
“desolation” may be the coming great worldwide earthquake that we read about in
Revelation 6:12-17, before the Two Witnesses and before the 7th Trumpet sounds. We are back
tracking from the Two Witnesses of Revelation 11, of course, because we know it
is not until after they appear that we know of the 3.5 years of their ministry
at the end finishing in their resurrection to meet the Lord in the
air. Bouncing back we read nothing about a Temple standing or anything about
“daily sacrificing”, so this must be something before, even before the Great
Quake of Revelation 6.
And notice the 2390 days do not come into play until
after the “daily sacrifice” is taken away. Either this
time this end time is talking about the Second rebuilt Temple or it is talking
about a coming Temple for a future day. The
“end-times” is either about the “end-times” of the Temple or it is for a future
Temple and “end-time”.
If not back then, just after our Lord’s crucifixion and the destruction
of the Temple and the abolishing of the sacrifice in 68-79 AD and we take it to
mean this present day, then this would mean we are looking for a rebuilding of
the Temple and the sacrificial system in Jerusalem. There is a
third possibility, if we understand the Roman destruction of the Temple as the
ending of the daily sacrifice, in a physical sense, as out Lord is really the
“end of the daily sacrifice” whether the Jews accept this or not, that is the
truth. And, if this then is the case and the fulfillment is found in the life
and death and resurrection of our Savior then this would point to the Muslim
mosque as the possible thing standing on the Holy Place, and we could even say
it “stands in the Holy Place”.
In the current world condition the Islamic terror, surrounding Israel is
the very thing this Mosques on the Holy Mountain represents --
destruction.
The Muslims of Allah rage against the God of Israel
and seek to bring total destruction so their Messiah will come. The
abomination is to come first, as I see it, and then a “proclaiming of the true
Gospel Kingdom of God is to be preached and proclaimed and even
published.
It is likely the Two Witnesses will accomplish this and the world will
hate them.
The Two Witnesses are not some great Christian work
with networks and thousands of followers, no, they are dressed in “sack cloth”
which suggest they are not rich, not leaders of a mega Church. Sack cloth
is the cheapest of materials so we can knew they will not appear in robes of
princes or royalty or of priests. This could be a wrong view but one thing is
sure, time will tell.
We need to keep and open mind about this, remember,
Daniel was told his words were to be sealed up – meaning they would not be
understood until the real “end times”. Men have
been declaring we are in the end times for hundreds of years, thousands even,
but we are not there yet, are we?
Peace