Source: https://nightlightblogdotcom.wordpress.com/tag/judaism/
Timestamp: 2019-04-24 06:56:58+00:00

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Revelation 12:7-17: Turmoil in Heaven.
7] And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angel fought with the devil; and the dragon and his angels fought, 8] but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer. 9] So the great dragon was cast out, the serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
13] Now when the dragon saw that he had been cast to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male Child. 14] But the woman was given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness to her place, where she is nourished for a time and times and half a time, from the presence of the serpent. 15] So the serpent spewed water out of his mouth like a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away by the flood. 16] But the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed up the flood which the dragon had spewed out of his mouth. 17] And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.
Daniel 12:1 refers to this event. It says, “At that time Michael shall stand up, the great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation, even to that time.
One thing about this “war.” Daniel 10:13, 20 tell us that Satan and his angels oppose and try to hinder God at every step, but that does not mean that they can in any way alter His purpose or ultimately prevent God from doing what He wants to do. There is entirely too much of this idea, however veiled it might be, that God and Satan are equals, that the “forces of good and evil” are somehow evenly matched. Or as one false teacher puts it, if the church doesn’t pray enough, then, in effect, heaven falters.
From the earliest record in Scripture, it’s taught that Satan has access to heaven, Job 1, 2. And, as we see in the life of Job, he accuses the people of God. This tells us the significance of 1 John 2:1: we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And don’t overlook the significance of the fact that Jesus is called “the righteous.” He appears before the Father as our Substitute, our Savior. It’s His righteousness imputed to us through faith that we must have because we have none of our own. Religion, yes, routine and ritual, bucket loads, righteousness that God will accept, not a bit.
Revelation tells us that there is coming a time when Satan will finally be thrown out of heaven and that will result in a time of trouble on this earth never seen before and never to be seen again, a time referred to in Jeremiah 30:7 as the time of Jacob’s trouble.
Lest there should be any doubt as to who this “dragon” is, he’s clearly identified as the serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, v. 9. Further, he’s characterized as one who deceives the whole world. We could do a whole series just on this. He deceives, he denies, he distorts, he counterfeits. Do you really think that everything in our time that calls itself “Christian” is of God? To say nothing of all the other religions in our world, or the cultural chaos that has engulfed society?
Woe is pronounced for the earth, though heaven rejoices that, at long last, this would-be usurper of the Throne, this interloper, is finally banished. There is one thing these who rejoice say, and that is that, once thrown out of heaven, the devil knows he only has a little while remaining before he himself is judged. It’s an interesting study in Scripture to see what the devil knows to be true and what he teaches about it, as, for example, the existence of God.
a. They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb. Remember that John saw a Lamb as though it had been slain, Revelation 5:6. This is where it all starts, because without shedding of blood there is no remission, no forgiveness of sins.
b. and by the word of their testimony. We have a lot of misconceptions about the Devil in our culture. Some people deny his existence altogether, some people run around rebuking him, other spend all their time worrying about him. 1 Corinthians 6:20, You were bought with a price, therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s. What price? This gets us back to the first point: knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct…, but with the precious blood of Christ, 1 Peter 1:18-19. We don’t overcome the Devil by “rebuking” him, but by living for God and eternity.
2. The woman, vs. 14-16.
These verses amplify what’s already been told of this woman’s plight and persecution. For example, she is given some sort of assistance in her flight. John describes this as wings of a great eagle, v. 14. By some means, she is enabled to flee quickly from her persecutor. Again, her place is mentioned , vs. 6, 14, and a specific period, time and times and half a time. This corresponds to the one thousand two hundred and sixty days, or three and a half years, mentioned in v. 6. The devil sends a flood after her. Ezekiel 38 describes an invasion of Israel from the north by many armies. See also Zechariah 14:2. Perhaps this is a contingent from that army pursuing the fleeing Jews.
The references to “her place,” the assistance given her when fleeing, the fact that she is nourished during her time of isolation, these all remind us of what Zechariah 14:2 tells us. God says, “I will gather all the nations to battle against Jerusalem.” In all this God is in control of events. He’s not sitting up there on His throne anxiously waiting for someone to take the first step so He can step in Himself. That’s the only real hope any of us have as we see our world, perhaps maybe even our lives in one way or another, circling the drain – that there’s a reason, a purpose, for what’s going on around us.
The enemy sends a flood to destroy the woman, but, again, she is delivered: the earth opened its mouth and swallowed up the flood, v. 16. If necessary, God can even marshal “the forces of nature” to aid His people. Now, we’re not told exactly what this intervention is, perhaps an earthquake, as in Exodus 15:12, Numbers 16:31. Perhaps it’s the result of the earthquake which accompanies the Lord’s invasion, Ezekiel 38:19, 20; Zechariah 14:4. There are historical references of sandstorms burying armies.
3. the remnant, vs. 17.
Jews are spread all over the world and even in the time of temporary peace for the nation that Daniel speaks of, not all of them will come back to the land. Those who do not become fair game for the anger of the devil as he finds himself backed into a corner, as it were, knowing he has only a short time to do damage to Israel. But it isn’t simply that the objects of his persecution are simply ethnic Jews; they are describes as those who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.
In short, they receive both halves of Scripture.
Some folks have difficulty with the idea that saved people, in this case, Jews, “keep the commandments of God.” The whole subject of the Law is well beyond the scope of this post. Just let me say that the Mosaic Law wasn’t simply the Jew’s “religion.” It was his culture, his life. True, if he “kept” it, it became a means of “righteousness” for him, but even after a Jew “knew the Lord,” like Paul, the Law was his culture. It defined what he was. He didn’t throw it out simply because he had found the One to whom it pointed. He DID NOT look to the Law for his salvation, but then, neither did he abandon living by its principles.
We see an example of this in Acts 21. Paul had returned to Jerusalem. While he was there, he was told that his enemies had circulated rumors that he had been teaching “all the Jews who are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses,” v. 21. To counter this, he was advised, “therefore do what we tell you: We have four men who have taken a vow, Take them and be purified with them, and pay their expenses so that they may shave their heads, and that all may know that those things of which they were informed concerning you are nothing, but that you yourself also walk orderly and keep the law,” vs. 22-24, emphasis added.
But pay attention to the rest of what it said! But concerning the Gentiles who believe, we have written and decided that they should observe no such thing, except that they should keep themselves from things offered to idols,” etc, v. 25, emphasis added. The whole story of this edict is found in Acts 15.
Once again, let me repeat, it was not a matter of salvation for the early church, which was, after all, composed almost entirely of Jews. It was a matter of simply continuing to be who they were.
In the same way, this remnant is defined as made up of those who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.
1] Now a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a garland of twelve stars. 2] Then being with child, she cried out in labor and in pain to give birth.
3] And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great, fiery red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and seven diadems on his heads. 4] His tail drew a third of the stars of heaven and threw them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was ready to give birth, to devour her Child as soon as it was born. 5] She bore a male Child who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron. And her Child was caught up to God and His throne. 6] Then the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, that they should feed her there one thousand two hundred and sixty days.
God says otherwise. That, in fact, without Him, there would be no material world.
This chapter tells us something of the unseen happenings of this material world.
Chs. 12 and 13 introduce the first of a series of “7s” in the rest of the book. There are: seven beings, chs. 12, 13; seven visions, ch. 14; seven bowls, chs. 15, 16; seven dooms, chs. 17-20; and seven new things, chs. 21-22.
1. The woman, v. 1.
It seems to me that these two descriptions identify the woman in Revelation as Israel, but Israel from a particular standpoint: in labor, that is, in childbirth. A few verses later, more detail is given.
2. The dragon, vs. 3-6.
This being is identified as Satan in v. 9. Here again, though, there is a particular context. The seven heads and ten horns identify a particular time, which we believe is yet future, as we’ll see, and the rest of these verses identify a particular theme: opposition to and attempts to destroy her Child, that is, the Lord Jesus. Reference to His birth doesn’t change our view of Satan and that what Revelation tells us is still future; it simply tells us that it wasn’t just Herod trying to kill the infant Jesus, but Satan himself as well. He has consistently opposed God’s revealed redemptive purpose. It’s beyond the purpose of this post to pursue this study, but from the Garden of Eden onward, Satan has tried (unsuccessfully) to thwart God’s working. All he’s managed to do is to further its accomplishment.
Two things only are said of her Child: that He was to rule all nations with a rod of iron, and that He was caught up to God’s throne. It’s important to understand that Scripture never says that He was caught up to His own throne, or that this is just a reference to His headship over the church. Cf. Revelation 3:21. We’ve mentioned this before and will visit it again later in these studies.
Perhaps there is one thing: how can we say the woman is Israel, and yet it was not “the nation” who gave birth to the Lord, but the virgin Mary? For most, if not all of her history, Israel has yearned for the coming of the Messiah. It was simply through this young woman, this virgin, that God brought the Messiah into Israel. The fact that Israel rejected Him because He didn’t fit their notions of what the Messiah would do doesn’t alter the fact that God has a redemptive purpose for Israel, and that she’s not permanently put aside. That purpose will one day be completed.
Between vs. 5 and 6 lies the whole church age.
In v. 6, the woman flees into the wilderness to a special place prepared by God, where she will be preserved, protected and provided for during a time identified as 1260 days, or three-and-a-half years. More details are given later in this portion of Scripture.
I recently watched a very interesting documentary on holy places in Jerusalem. It showed places which Islam, Judaism and Christianity hold to be sacred. The Islamic shrines in particular were very beautiful. I marveled at the patience and dedication it must have taken to build them. They are truly works of art. Islam was once the bastion of science and math. Though I recognize that not all Muslims may agree with the practice, it’s a shame that Islam is now known mainly for blowing things up and killing people.
One of the things that struck me was the difference in the places honored by the three groups. Islam and Catholic Christianity have large, ornate buildings. Judaism has a ruin….
In contrast to the ornate monuments of the other religions, Judaism has the Wailing Wall. There was a segment describing excavations at the base of the Wall, showing what Herod did to prepare to build it. There was also mention of the oldest synagogue in Jerusalem, on the first floor of the home of the Jewish family featured in the film. Nevertheless, the Wailing Wall is the main Jewish location in Jerusalem.
The documentary told the story of Jerusalem through the eyes of three families, one from each of the three religions represented in the city. In a way, it was a sad documentary. The Muslim family was separated by the politics of the region. The mother and son lived in Jerusalem. The father was forced to live elsewhere because he was not Jewish. The family could only get together at a “neutral” site, which they did once a week on Friday.
The Jewish family had been in Jerusalem for nine generations, except for a few years because of one of the frequent battles in the area. In fact, they were responsible for watching over the oldest synagogue in Jerusalem.
The Christian was a member of the Franciscan Order, whose brother had been murdered and the perpetrator had never been found.
The story revolved around these three families preparations for their respective ways of worship on Friday.
The Islamic woman and her son had prepared food for a meal with the father, then had to go through security checkpoints to get to him – then to get back home. The Jewish family observed a meal before making their way to the Wailing Wall to pray for their city and people. The Franciscan monk, with several of his brothers, walked the Via Dolorosa, the traditional journey Jesus took on His way to the Cross. In it are the 14 Stations of the Cross, which depict various events believed to have been part of that journey. The Franciscans’ goal was The Church of the Holy Sepulcher, the traditional site of the Crucifixion. It was this monk’s job this time to read the English version of the narrative at each Station. The interesting thing about him was that he is Palestinian, not Jewish or Caucasian.
If “God is One,” as all these religions teach, then how can such divergent views – indeed, such contradictory views – all lead to Him?
Toward the end of the documentary, one of the Muslim spokesmen referred to the teaching of the Quran that “the people of the Book,” that is, Jews and Christians, were to embrace the teachings of his book.
Although the theology of all this is way beyond the scope of this post, I acknowledge each person’s right, humanly speaking, to believe as they will or not in this present world. We have that freedom in the US, a freedom not enjoyed in other countries, particularly where Islam is predominant. I would never force others to accept my views. I put these views on this blog with the hope that they may at least give others something to think about.
The thing is, how can I, as one of “the people of the Book,” turn from it to receive new and contradictory teachings?
For example, Islam, though recognizing Isaac, teaches that Ishmael was the favored son of Abraham, and it was he who was sacrificed on the Mount. Scripture teaches that Isaac was the chosen son of promise and that Ishmael, though blessed as a result of Abraham’s prayer, was rejected and sent away. Isaac was sacrificed, not Ishmael. And he was truly sacrificed, the fact that God intervened at the last moment notwithstanding. Abraham was fully prepared to kill his son, though he was prevented from doing so. Hebrews 11:17, 18 has a commentary on this, which you ought to read to get Abraham’s thoughts during this trial.
Jesus is looked on as just another prophet, like Moses and Adam. Of His crucifixion, Islam says that it is a “monstrous falsehood”. On these two distinctions lie the main differences between Islam and the Bible.
Moses was indeed a prophet, but Scripture never tells us whether Adam was ever “saved”. His son Abel is the first one it ever calls “righteous”.
During His own lifetime, some people thought Jesus was merely a prophet, or a reincarnation of one of the Old Testament figures, Matthew 16:14. As the spokesman for the disciples, Peter said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God,” v. 16. Though the disciples didn’t understand everything that was involved until after the Resurrection, they understood that Jesus was more than just a mere man.
It’s often said that Jesus never claimed to be God. This is false. John 8 records one of what were probably many such confrontations between Jesus and the Jews. In this particular incident, the Jews were talking about Abraham and during the discussion wanted to know if Jesus were greater than their founding patriarch. In John 8:58, Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, ‘Before Abraham was, I AM.” By His use of the designation Jehovah in the Old Testament used of Himself, Exodus 3:14, the Jews understood fully that Jesus was claiming to be God. That’s why they tried to kill Him, v. 59.
As for the crucifixion, our Lord many times referred to His death, Matthew 16:21; 17:22, 23; 20:18, 19. The disciples fell woefully short in their understanding of what He was saying when He told them about it because His dying didn’t fit in with what they thought would happen when the Messiah came. They failed to understand that without that death, none of the things promised in the Old Testament about the final restoration of Israel could happen.
This is outside the scope of this post, but let me say only that the OT promises of Israel’s restoration were not all fulfilled in the return from Babylon under Ezra and Nehemiah, nor are its promises of “the kingdom” fulfilled in “the church” in some sort of “spiritual Israel.” Many disagree.
As for the other, how many “paths” are there to God?
It’s only as we understand what the Lord meant when He said in John 14:6, “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” In other words, if you ever want to get to know the Father, the Son will have to introduce you.
“Religion” looks on His statements as unnecessarily restrictive, or as “bigoted.” But Christianity is the only religion with a Cross, with a Resurrection. In just a little while, it will be Easter. Multitudes will take part in “Easter Sunrise Services.” I wonder, though, how many truly understand the significance of what they’re celebrating. Or is Easter just an opportunity to wear a new outfit? One of a couple of time a year one goes to “church”? Something to be done before the annual Easter egg hunt?
The Resurrection is the evidence that God accepted the death which preceded it. That death was a payment for sins. In theological terms, it was a “satisfaction” for the penalty required by our breaking of God’s Law. The Franciscan brother mentioned above talked about “getting to salvation” by suffering, etc. But salvation is NOT about what WE do. There’s nothing we can do to pay for our own sins. It’s all about what the Lord Jesus did, not only on the Cross, but during His whole life.
God requires absolute perfection, with not a single misstep in our whole life. Who can honestly say that of themselves? A single fault, a single “mistake” is enough to condemn us forever. What, then, about the innumerable things of which we are all guilty? There’s only been One Who could ever challenge His enemies, “Which one of you can accuse me of sin?” John 8:46 paraphrase.
It’s that perfect righteous life that’s imputed to the believing sinner that allows him or her to stand uncondemned before a holy, righteous and just God. It’s that effective death which allows him to enter heaven rather than being consigned to hell. In and of ourselves, we have no such life or death.
There’s no salvation in “religion,” no “path to God” through the doors of any religious building, no matter how beautiful or impressive it may be. No religious observance can atone for a single sin.
Salvation is only to be found in the Lord Jesus Christ, who He was and what He did. There is no other “path to God.” No other door by which we may enter.
There’s so much that could be said about this. Let me just finish up with this: Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, Acts 16:31. He alone is the path to God.

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