JOEL 2 GENERATION PODCAST

Acts 11:27-30 – What? Prophets in the Church? 

No epistles by Agabus? / "Foretelling” / Prophets from Jerusalem

Response: People believed and acted 

GIFT OF PROPHECY IN THE NEW TESTAMENT CHURCH - QUESTIONS

1. Difference between OT Prophets and NT Prophets – Authority in OT vs. NT?

2. Who can prophesy in the NT? Who can be prophets? 

3. What do we do with prophetic revelation in the NT? 

3. Prophetic Gifts vs. Prophet(s) - Office

4. What are the prophetic gifts?

5. Why would we still NEED prophetic gifts? We have the Scriptures.

6. Types of Prophetic Revelation 

7. How do you get prophetic gifts?

8. How do you grow in prophetic gifting?

9. Our role? God’s role? (sovereign)

10. Current Misuse of the Prophetic Gifts

11. What if a prophet makes a mistake? (Deuteronomy 13)

12. Does making a mistake make one a “false prophet”?

RELEVANT NT PASSAGES ABOUT THE GIFT OF PROPHECY

Acts 2:6-8, 42  - 42 ...devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching

1 Cor 12:1, 4-11, 27-31

1 Cor 14:1, 3-5, 22-25, 26-32, 37-40  
1 Thes 5:19-21 

Acts 13:1-2 

Acts 21:8-14 - 8 

Eph 3:3-5 - 3 

Eph 4:11-13

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN OT & NT PROPHETS

OT & NT Prophets receive revelation 

NT Prophets do NOT have the same authority as OT Prophets!

No OT command – “Test everything" or “Let the others judge”

Old Testament Prophets established/defined doctrine

The Apostles (who all prophesied) established/defined doctrine in the NT – Today??

NT Prophets were NOT establishing doctrine, defining doctrine!

Discern times (spirits), edify/encourage/console, direction, warn

DID THE GIFT OF PROPHECY CONTINUE AFTER THE APOSTLES??

Didache & Shepherd of Hermas – $ = False Prophet

Justin Martyr (AD 160) - The prophetic gifts remain with us, even to the present time….Now, it is possible to see among us women and men who possess gifts of the Spirit of God. 

Irenaeus (AD 180) - ...perform [works] in His name, in order to promote the welfare of others, according to the gift that each one has received from Him. Some truly and certainly cast out devils. The result is that those who have been cleansed from evil spirits frequently both believe and join themselves to the Church. Others have foreknowledge of things to come. They see visions, and they utter prophetic expressions. Still others heal the sick by laying their hands upon them, and the sick are made whole. ...for the benefit of the Gentiles, neither practicing deception upon any, nor taking any reward from them. For, just as she has received without charge from God, so does she minister without charge. ... has worked miracles for the benefit of mankind, and not to lead them into error. The name of our Lord Jesus Christ even now confers benefits.... many brethren in the Church who possess prophetic gifts, and who through the Spirit speak all kinds of languages, and bring to light for the general benefit the hidden things of men.  

GENTILE REVIVAL BEGINS - AD 41

Acts 11:19-26 - 19 Now those who were scattered because of the persecution that arose over Stephen (AD 34-5) traveled as far as Phoenicia and Cyprus and Antioch, speaking the word to no one except Jews. 20 But there were some of them, men of Cyprus and Cyrene, who on coming to Antioch spoke to the Hellenists also, preaching the Lord Jesus. 21 And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number who believed turned to the Lord. 22 The report of this came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. 23 When he came and saw the grace of God, he was glad, and he exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose, 24 for he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a great many people were added to the Lord. 25 So Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, 26 and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they met with the church (where?) and taught a great many people. And in Antioch the disciples were first called Christians. 

**God’s Intention of the New Covenant = Jews & Gentiles**

THE NEW COVENANT'S INTENTION - ONE NEW HOUSE/MAN

•AD 41 – Still “speaking the word to no one except Jews” (Acts 11:19) – 11 years AFTER Pentecost!!! 

•A new name emerges – “Christian” – a new era/day, the full intent of Messiah’s mission, in a new city (Antioch – center of “CHRISTIAN-ity”)

•WHY PAUL? former Pharisee who had been “un-pharisee-ized”) – would have had his “leaven” removed. 3 years in “Damascus” (Essenes)

Prophecy found amongst the Dead Sea Scroll

Testament of Benjamin - “I will no longer be called a ravening wolf on account of your ravages, but a worker of the Lord, distributing food to them that work what is good. One will rise up from my seed in the latter times, beloved of the Lord, hearing His voice on the earth, enlightening with new knowledge all the Gentiles, bursting in on Israel for salvation with the light of knowledge, and tearing it away from them like a wolf, and giving it to the synagogue of the Gentiles. Until the consummation of the ages, he will be in the synagogues of the Gentiles, and among their rulers, as a strain of music in the mouth of all; and he will be inscribed in the holy books, both his work and his word, and he will be a chosen one of God forever; and because of him my father Jacob instructed me, saying, ‘He will fill up that which lacks from your tribe.’” 

Paul learned of his “Prophetic destiny” - Life & Ministry, Writings = Scripture, Gentile MissionTribe of Benjamin (Phil 3:5)/ “Apostle of the Gentiles” (Rom. 11:13; 1 Tim. 2:7; 2 Tim. 1:11) - His Epistles – expound the new law, the Law of Christ (Galatians 6:2 – “…so fulfill the Law of Christ) = the Law of the New Covenant. 

Ephesians 2:12-21 - 11 Therefore remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh, called “the uncircumcision” by what is called the circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands— 12 remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 14 For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility 15 by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, 16 and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. 17 And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. 18 For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. 19 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. 22 In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.

NEW COVENANT'S INTENTION (continued) - UNDOING the Effects of the Tower of Babel and the 3rd Angelic Fall

Genesis 11:1-9 – Tower of Babel incident, God’s judgment = disinheriting the nations (i.e. the Gentiles) - disinherited/divorces the nations (before this God was in covenant w/ ALL of Noah’s descendants (Gen 9:1) – God’s judgment. Gen 12 – calls Abram OUT OF MESOPOTAMIA.

3RD ANGELIC FALL – the Fall of Sons of God put over the Nations  – (Deut. 32/Psalm 82) 

Deuteronomy 32:8–9 - When the Most High gave to the nations their inheritance, when He divided mankind, He fixed the borders of the peoples according to the number of the sons of God/angels of God. 9 - But the LORD’s portion is his people, Jacob his allotted heritage.

“Deuteronomy 32:8–9 informs us that the act of judgment enacted on humanity at Babel resulted not only in dividing and scattering them but assigning them to members of Yahweh’s heavenly host-council.”

“In terms of a human perspective, while Yahweh’s judgment was harsh, it was not final. When God chose to raise up a new human family (Israel) in the wake of Babel, he left room for the salvation of the forsaken nations in his covenant with Abram. It would be through Abram’s descendants that all the nations of the earth would be blessed (Gen 12:1–3). The promise would, of course, be fulfilled in Christ (Gal 3:16: “Now the promises were made to Abraham and to his offspring. It does not say, ‘And to off-springs,’ referring to many, but referring to one, ‘And to your offspring,’ who is Christ”). Prior to the coming of the Promised One, gentiles had to join themselves to Israel (i.e. proselytes/circumcision), forsaking other gods, to be in right relationship to the true God. Israel was to be a kingdom of priests bearing witness to the goodness of life with Yahweh as their God, but there was no overt attempt to evangelize the inhabitants of the nations. They were under judgment.” 

NEW COVENANT'S INTENTION - Dealing with the 3rd Angelic Fall

Psalm 82:1-6, 8 – the corruption of those Gods! (Describes their fall!)

1 God [elohim] has taken his place/stands in the divine council; in the midst of the gods [elohim] he holds judgment: 2 “How long will you judge unjustly and show partiality to the wicked? Selah 3 Give justice to the weak and the fatherless; maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute. 4 Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked.” 5 They have neither knowledge nor understanding, they walk about in darkness; all the foundations of the earth are shaken. 6 I said, “You are gods [elohim], sons of the Most High [beney elyon], all of you;  7 nevertheless, like men you shall die, and fall like any prince.”  8 Arise, O God, judge the earth; for you shall inherit all the nations! (Through Messiah!)

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Commentary - “The gods charged with the rule of the nations became corrupt administrators and, in so doing, sowed chaos in the heavenly realm as well. Yahweh created a world characterized by righteousness (ṣedāqâ) and well-being (šālôm). In Psalm 82, “The gods are condemned to death for their failure to carry out justice in the human realm.…”

The concept that the nations of the world were allotted to lesser gods as a punishment at Babel and that those gods sowed chaos on earth and were hostile to Yahweh and his people can be seen in a variety of Second Temple [Jewish] texts.”

God disinherited humanity (the Gentiles) at the Babel event, assigning the nations to ‘lesser gods’ (angels/sons of God) who sowed chaos amongst their charge. “The notion that different nations were allotted to different gods or heavenly beings was widespread in the ancient world…The origin of this idea is to be sought in the ancient Near Eastern concept of the Divine Council.

3 CHARACTERISTICS OF THE NEW COVENANT

1. New Covenant – for who? Displaces the Old Covenant, obsolete (AD70 – End of Temple Judaism) – Why the Apostle Paul? 

Jeremiah 31:31-34 - 31 “…I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, 32 not like the covenant [Mosaic] that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke,…33 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days,… (Why it took them so long to get the “gentile part” of the memo?)

Ephesians 2:15 - 15 by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances – Now? Christ’s commandments…“a new commandment I give you”

Hebrews 8:13 - 13 In speaking of a new covenant, he makes the first one [Mosaic] obsolete. And what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away. (AD 70 approaching)

Hebrews 9:9-10 - 9 According to this arrangement [the Mosaic Covenant], gifts and sacrifices are offered that cannot perfect the conscience of the worshiper, 10 but deal only with food and drink and various washings, regulations for the body imposed until the time of reformation.

God thus shows that the ancient covenant [Mosaic] is temporary only, when He indicates its change. Also, when He promises that it will be followed by an eternal one [New Covenant]. …The epistle that we also allow to be the most decisive against Judaism, is that in which the apostle [Paul] instructs the Galatians. For we fully admit the abolition of the ancient Law. We hold that it actually proceeds from the dispensation of the Creator. ...Christ marks the period of the separation when He says, “The Law and the Prophets were until John.” [Lk. 16:16] He thus made the Baptist the boundary between the two dispensations of the old things that were then terminating and the new things that were then beginning.  Tertullian (AD 207)

**Not Replacement Theology – “One New House (Man) under the Priesthood and Law of Christ” Theology**

2. Reversing the Tower of Babel Judgment on mankind – from disinheritance to remarrying the nations (the Gentiles)! - Testimony - “God wants to put a ring on your finger”

3. Disempowerment of those “gods” over the nations – = our empowerment - prayer, EVANGELISM - preaching the Gospel (setting captives free), exorcism, healing, gifts of the Spirit, discernment, enforcing their original (pre-fallen) mandate (justice, etc.)  - Where? in the 1st Heavens (on Earth)

In early June, an Air Force officer and former intelligence officer named David Grusch came forward as a protected whistleblower and testified that the U.S. Government is in possession of 12 crafts/vehicles (made by "non-human intelligence") that either landed or crashed and had also recovered "non-human bodies". Additionally, he claimed the secret Pentagon program has been working on reverse engineering of the technologically advanced "spacecraft".

The US Government tried to take control of the "narrative" by denying the veracity of the report both a week before and a week afterward including from the agency that Grusch had previously worked for. 

In this podcast, I look at the modern history of the UFO phenomenon which began in the 1940s. I then look at the modern "Occult History" which is directly related to the modern UFO phenomenon. A Christian perspective MUST factor in the occult/spiritual dynamics that have characterized the modern era. 

I next go back into the Ancient History of the UFO phenomenon - looking at the Fall of Angelic beings. We look at and consider many of the relevant Biblical passages in both the Old and New Testaments.

I argue at the end of the podcast that we must interpret the Biblical Passages correctly if we hope to explain the modern UFO/Alien phenomenon. Many Christians do not interpret the key Biblical passages according to their ancient and Apostolic understandings. This will result in an inability to respond to any "evidence" that emerges pointing to "non-human" craft and entities. If it is simply "all spiritual, all demonic" as many Christians superficially claim, then how will they explain what a man like David Grusch is claiming?

Finally, we look at why we should we care? What, if any application, is there for Christians? The Bible rightly understood/interpreted in fact can explain ALL of the paranormal phenomena that is so ubiquitous in modern Western Culture. The Church must be prepared and sadly, right now, much of it is entirely unprepared to "give an answer" to the questions that millions are now asking! 

#ufos, #uaps, #aliens, #disclosure, #spacecrafts, #flyingsaucers, #roswell, #deception, #abduction, #grusch, #whistleblower

Are we under the Law of Moses (Mosaic Law/Sinai Covenant/Old Covenant) today? There is so much confusion amongst followers of Jesus as to what from the Old Testament

In this podcast, we will look at Acts 11:1-18 where Peter explains what happened with Cornelius and a group of Gentiles in Acts 10. We will also look at Acts 15 where under the Holy Spirit's inspiration, we learn exactly what God required of Gentile believers. We will also see that as the 1st century progressed there was in fact a shift from the Old Covenant (Mosaic/Sinai) to the New Covenant as there was no longer any way for Jews to carry out the requirements of "the Law" that was given to Moses because there was no longer a Jewish Temple. Jesus FULFILLED the Law and the Old Covenant was deemed "obsolete".

Summary of the Jerusalem Council (Acts 15)

GENTILES DO NOT HAVE TO KEEP THE MOSAIC LAW – ceremonial, civic, dietary

NO SEXUAL IMMORALITY (moral law) – fornication, adultery, homosexuality, etc. 

NO CIRCUMCISION (from Abrahamic Covenant)

NO DETAILED DIETARY LAWS (only blood, strangled animal meat, meat sacrificed to idols)

NO SABBATH OBSERVANCE COMMANDED (ceremonial)

NO FESTIVALS COMMANDED

What LAW are we commanded to obey today? The Law of Christ – His Teachings and His Apostles

“If you love me, you will keep/obey MY commandments” – John 14:15

(9 of the 10 commandments repeated in the New Testament – the MORAL LAW)

Confusion about Biblical Covenants

How many are there?  Who were they made with? Who did they apply to?  What were/are the conditions?

Which still apply TODAY?  Which commandments are we supposed to obey?

What commandments/regulations/ordinances are “perpetual”? (“everlasting”/ “forever”) 

Were any commandments “temporary”?

Seventh-Day Adventists / Messianic Judaism (*for Jewish background)

(Some) Word of Faith Prosperity Teachers – blessings, curses?

Hebrew Roots / Torah Observant – “Lawlessness”?

Biblical Covenants - Are there 4? 5? 6?

Adamic (?) / Noahic / Abrahamic / Mosaic/Sinai (Old Covenant) / Davidic / New Covenant 

1. Noahic – WHO? all mankind (Gen 8-9) / SIGN? Rainbow

2. Abrahamic – WHO? Abraham and his Seed (Gen 12, 15, 17, 22) / SIGN? Circumcision

3. Mosaic (Old) – WHO? Nation of Israel (Exodus 19-40, Deuteronomy) / SIGN? Sabbath

4. Davidic – WHO? David & his Son (2 Sam. 7, 1 Kgs. 2 & 9, Ps 2, 89) / SIGN? Throne

5. New Covenant – WHO? Jews & Gentiles (Jer. 31:31-34, Ez. 36) / SIGN? Baptism

Jeremiah 31:31-34 - 31 “Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, 32 not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the Lord. 33 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 34 And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”

In this message, I synthesize the 2 messages I've recently posted about House Churches. 

I share my journey and prophetic history with how God has led us and spoken to us. 

I discuss the issue/question "What about the Big Church?" - the way we have been doing church for so long. 

I then look at 4 points:

1. Church BEGAN in houses 
2. Revival REQUIRED/WILL REQUIRE houses 
3. Houses are KEY to evangelism - to reach the unreached/despised
4. Holy Spirit Ministry and House Churches
5. The future - will the Church that began in houses, END in houses?

Ezekiel 47:1, 8-12 - 1 Then he brought me back to the door of the temple, and behold, water was issuing from below the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east). The water was flowing down from below the south end of the threshold of the temple, south of the altar. 

…8 And he said to me, “This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah, and enters the sea; when the water flows into the sea, the water will become fresh. 9 And wherever the river goes, every living creature that swarms will live, and there will be very many fish. For this water goes there, that the waters of the sea[e] may become fresh; so everything will live where the river goes. 10 Fishermen will stand beside the sea. From Engedi to Eneglaim it will be a place for the spreading of nets. Its fish will be of very many kinds, like the fish of the Great Sea. 11 But its swamps and marshes will not become fresh; they are to be left for salt. 12 And on the banks, on both sides of the river, there will grow all kinds of trees for food. Their leaves will not wither, nor their fruit fail, but they will bear fresh fruit every month, because the water for them flows from the sanctuary. Their fruit will be for food, and their leaves for healing.”

Psalm 1:1-3 - 1 Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; 2 but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. 3 He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.

John 15:1-11 - 1 “I am a true sprouting vine, and the farmer who tends the vine is my Father. 2 He cares for the branches connected to me by lifting and propping up the fruitless branches and pruning every fruitful branch to yield a greater harvest. 3 The words I have spoken over you have already cleansed you. 4 So you must remain in life-union with me,  for I remain in life-union with you. For as a branch severed from the vine will not bear fruit, so your life will be fruitless unless you live your life intimately joined to mine. 5 “I am the sprouting vine and you’re my branches.  As you live in union with me as your source, fruitfulness will stream from within you—but when you live separated from me you are powerless. 6 If a person is separated from me, he is discarded; such branches are gathered up and thrown into the fire to be burned. 7 But if you live in life-union with me and if my words live powerfully within you—then you can ask whatever you desire and it will be done. 8 When your lives bear abundant fruit, you demonstrate that you are my mature disciples who glorify my Father! 9 “I love each of you with the same love that the Father loves me. You must continually let my love nourish your hearts. 10 If you keep my commands, you will live in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands, for I continually live nourished and empowered by his love. 11 My purpose for telling you these things is so that the joy that I experience will fill your hearts with overflowing gladness!

Galatians 5:22-23 - 22 But the fruit produced by the Holy Spirit within you is divine love in all its varied expressions: joy that overflows,  peace that subdues, patience that endures, kindness in action, a life full of virtue,  faith that prevails, 23 gentleness of heart, and strength of spirit. Never set the law above these qualities, for they are meant to be limitless. 

Summary of Part 1
+ The Church BEGAN in a house (will it END in houses?) 

+ No Church ‘buildings’ (earliest in the 200s, converted house)

+ Revival needed houses – evangelism/teaching/discipling

+ Public Meetings (i.e. Temple) often led to problems

+ First 10-year period involved ONLY Jews & circumcised proselytes   (2:5 - “devout Jews”, 2:11 - “both Jews and converts to Judaism”)

+ House-sized churches are still the norm in many places on Earth

+ Fearful (masked) people won’t go to big meetings, but homes?

+ House meetings necessitate relational evangelism (vs. contact)

ACTS TIMELINE/EVENTS – AD 40 – Gentile Pentecost (3.0)

ACTS 9:43 - 43 And he [Peter] stayed in Joppa for many days with one Simon, a tanner. [in a house]

Acts 10:1-5 - 1 At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion of what was known as the Italian Cohort, 2 a devout man who feared God with all his household, gave alms generously to the people, and prayed continually to God. 3 About the ninth hour of the day (WHILE IN PRAYER – v. 30) he saw clearly in a vision an angel of God come in and say to him, “Cornelius.” (HIS NAME) 4 And he stared at him in terror and said, “What is it, Lord?” And he said to him, “Your prayers and your alms have ascended as a memorial before God. (HIS PRAYERS) 5 And now send men to Joppa (PETER’S CITY) and bring one Simon who is called Peter (PETER’S FULL NAME). 

*WHO IS CALLING WHO?* - Lost calling the saved – Are we expecting this??

Acts 10:6-8 - 6 He is lodging with one Simon, a tanner, whose house is by the sea. (PETER’S ADDRESS from an Angel!)” 7 When the angel who spoke to him had departed, he called two of his servants and a devout soldier from among those who attended him, 8 and having related everything to them, he sent them to Joppa. 

*FIRST-TIME OBEDIENCE*

Acts 10:9-20 - 9 The next day, as they were on their journey and approaching the city, Peter went up on the housetop about the sixth hour to pray. (WHILE IN PRAYER) 10 And he became hungry and wanted something to eat, but while they were preparing it, he fell into a trance (MOST VULNERABLE) 11 and saw the heavens opened and something like a great sheet descending, being let down by its four corners upon the earth. 12 In it were all kinds of animals and reptiles and birds of the air. 13 And there came a voice to him: “Rise, Peter; kill and eat.” 14 But Peter said, “By no means, Lord; for I have never eaten anything that is common or unclean.” 15 And the voice came to him again a second time, “What God has made clean, do not call common.” 16 This happened three times, and the thing was taken up at once to heaven. 17 Now while Peter was inwardly perplexed as to what the vision that he had seen might mean, behold, the men who were sent by Cornelius, having made inquiry for Simon's house, stood at the gate (DIVINE TIMING) 18 and called out to ask whether Simon who was called Peter was lodging there. 19 And while Peter was pondering the vision, the Spirit said to him, “Behold, three men are looking for you. 20 Rise and go down and accompany them without hesitation, for I have sent them.” 

*ROLE OF SUPERNATURAL* - New Wineskins often require it. i.e. Muslims

*DIETARY LAWS? OLD COVENANT* – also an entirely NEW WINESKIN

*3 encounters + 1 Holy Spirit “says”* - WE can be STUCK in our ways, methods, expectations

Acts 10:21-33 - 21 And Peter went down to the men and said, “I am the one you are looking for. What is the reason for your coming?” 22 And they said, “Cornelius, a centurion, an upright and God-fearing man, who is well spoken of by the whole Jewish nation, was directed by a holy angel to send for you to come to his house (VIOLATION!) and to hear what you have to say.” 23 So he invited them in to be his guests. The next day he rose and *went away with them* (WITHOUT the “Approval” of the other Apostles!), and some of the brothers from Joppa accompanied him. 24 And on the following day they entered Caesarea. Cornelius was expecting them and had called together his relatives and close friends. 25 When Peter entered, Cornelius met him and fell down at his feet and worshiped him (CONFUSION). 26 But Peter lifted him up, saying, “Stand up; I too am a man.” 27 And as he talked with him, he went in and found many persons gathered. 28 And he said to them, “You yourselves know how unlawful it is for a Jew to associate with or to visit anyone of another nation, but God has shown me that I should not call any person common or unclean. 29 So when I was sent for, I came without objection (LOL). I ask then why you sent for me.” 30 And Cornelius said, “Four days ago, about this hour, I was praying (+ “fasting” – some translations) in my house at the ninth hour,  and behold, a man stood before me in bright clothing 31 and said, ‘Cornelius, your prayer has been heard and your alms have been remembered before God. 32 Send therefore to Joppa and ask for Simon who is called Peter. He is lodging in the house of Simon, a tanner, by the sea.’ (SHARED THE DETAILED PROPHETIC WORD) 33 So I sent for you at once (TRUE), and you have been kind enough to come. Now therefore we are all here in the presence of God to hear ALL that you have been COMMANDED by the Lord.” 

*LOST want to hear ALL* - not watering anything down, avoiding the difficult 

(Jesus = ONLY WAY, issue of sin/repentance, judgment)

Acts 10:34-48 - 34 So Peter opened his mouth and said: “Truly I understand that God shows no partiality,  35 but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him. 36 As for the word that he sent to Israel, preaching good news of peace through Jesus Christ (he is Lord of all), 37 you yourselves know what happened throughout all Judea, beginning from Galilee after the baptism that John proclaimed: 38 how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. 39 And we are witnesses of all that he did both in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a tree, 40 but God raised him on the third day and made him to appear, 41 not to all the people but to us who had been chosen by God as witnesses, who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. 42 And *he commanded us to preach* to the people and to testify that he is the one appointed by God to be judge of the living and the dead. 43 To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.” (THE GOSPEL) 44 While Peter was still saying these things, the Holy Spirit fell on ALL who heard the word. 45 And THE BELIEVERS from among the circumcised [Jewish background] who had come with Peter WERE AMAZED, because the gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out even on the Gentiles. 46 For they were hearing them speaking in tongues and extolling God. Then Peter declared, 47 “Can anyone withhold water for baptizing these people, who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?” 48 And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they [Gentiles] asked him [Peter] to remain [in their house] for some days.

*Preaching* - not “listening” – an apostle w/ an apostolic mandate

*Not just praying for people, prophesying…but also PREACHING!

*Who will we be “amazed” by when the Holy Spirit comes upon them? “even on the _______”

*BELIEVE & BE BAPTIZED – no delays / Spirit baptism!

SUMMARY

1. Meetings in HOMES (2 Biblical Strategies – are there more?)

a. PENTECOST 1.0 – For Jewish believers (a church w/ house groups to a church OF house groups)

b. PENTECOST 2.0 - For the harvest/lost/despised/rejected – 1st Century - Gentiles/Muslims/LGBTQ+?/Homeless?

This new wineskin was a HUGE barrier for Peter – going into THEIR homes! Jewish Dietary laws = obsolete (Old Covenant)

HOW will we find modern-day “God Fearers”? We don’t want it to take 10 years to discover the fullness of our calling!!

2. God pouring out His Spirit on house churches - Iran – 1 million believers? Evangelism in the U.S.?

*Both sides needed revelation – Cornelius (lost) & Peter (Christians)

*The bigger barrier was on the side of the believers – today? LGBTQ+? / *Jews & Arabs? – End Time harvest?

3. New means NEW – not going back to normal, will we learn what God has been trying to teach us? New approaches, new lifestyles, new obedience?  Holding things loosely.

4. Not getting distracted – silence other “voices” GOSPEL!!! – “run in such a way that you get the prize” (I Cor 9:24)

5. More Prophetic Direction – More training/equipping/teaching - only doing what we see/hear the Father doing/saying

WHOSE HOME NEEDS TO BE OPENED NEXT? 

Why do I think we can re-affirm that there is a strong case of "Endtime-itis" today in the Body of Christ?

Just recently I found the following titles for podcasts/videos being done by Christians:

•“Has the Tribulation Begun?”

•“The End has Begun”

•“Is the United States Mystery Babylon [in] THE BOOK OF REVELATION?”

•“What is the system of the Beast”?
•“End of the World”

•“God of Magog and the Antichrist”

•“The Antichrist Agenda”

•“666 and the Last Generation of Humans”

In this podcast, I will look at the different End-Time Views.

We will discuss the 3 main approaches to the fulfillment of Biblical End Time prophecies - Preterism, Historicism, and Futurism. What they are? How do they interpret the Book of RevelationWho held/holds them?

Next, we'll look at the Timing and Nature of Christ's Return and the Millennium - We will look at the 3 main views - Amillennialism, Postmillennialism, and Premillennialism - What do each of them teach? What are their strengths/weaknesses? Who held to/holds these positions?

After that, I will break down the 2 main views of Premillennialism - Historic and Dispensational. I will add a third one that has been termed "Apostolic Premillennialism". What doe they teach? Who held/holds them?

We look at well as the viewpoints on the Rapture - What exactly is the so-called "Rapture" and when will it occur? Does it happen BEFORE, DURING, or AFTER the Tribulation? This gets us into the doctrine of the Great Tribulation. What have people believed about it throughout Church History? 

We get into the main passage of Scripture that many of the End Times beliefs come from - Matthew 24. 

We also get into the passages/verses that talk about the Anti-Christ, the 1000-year Millennium, and the Great Tribulation - that includes Daniel 7:25, 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4,  Revelation 3:10, 7:17 and 20:1-3.

A main part of the message was looking at what happened in AD 70. Were many/most of the End Times prophecies fulfilled at that time? Or has AD 70 been ignored? Is it being over-emphasized and viewed as too important?

Perhaps the most important part of this message is to see what the Early Christians from the early 2nd Century and onwards believed. What did they believe about AD 70? Did they believe in a 1000-year literal Millennial Reign of Christ on the Earth? Did they believe that the Anti-Christ came in the 1st Century or was he still going to come in the future? Did they believe in a pre-Tribulation Rapture of the Church? 

We KNOW what they believed. Were they right? Who should we be listening to? What is clear is that many Christians today do not know what they believed and base their End Times views on what their pastor/s have taught and/or what their 'traditions' teach.

I've personally held to several of the viewpoints covered. I will share my "eclectic" one - wherein I try to take the "best of" the different viewpoints to inform my own today. Regardless of where people end up landing, this historical journey will help you to understand some of the most divisive topics in the Church today. May this help any of us who happen to be battling "Endtime-itis"!

#preterism #preterist #historicism #futurism #futurist #antichrist #postmillennialism #postmillennial
#premillennialism #premillennial #panmillennialism #panmillennial #rapture #millennium #1000-years #Revelation #tribulation #pretrib #midtrib #posttrib #prewrath #secondcoming #2ndcoming #endtimes #endtimeprophecy #prophecy #matthew24 #olivetdiscourse #70AD #jerusalem #deception #greattribulation

Pascha 2023 – Christ’s Descent

Apostle’s Creed - I believe in God the Father almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord, who was conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary, who suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried,  descended to the dead (lit. “to the lower”), rose again from the dead on the third day,

Acts 2:22-28, 31-32

22 “Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know— 23 this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. 24 God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it. 25 For David says concerning him,

“‘I saw the Lord always before me, for he is at my right hand that I may not be shaken;
26 therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced; my flesh also will dwell in hope.
27 For you will not abandon my soul to Hades, or let your Holy One see corruption.
28 You have made known to me the paths of life; you will make me full of gladness with your presence.’…
31 he [David] foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption. 32 This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses.

Eph. 4:9 - Now this, “He ascended”—what does it mean but that He also first descended into the lower parts of the earth?  

1 Pet. 3:18-19 - 18 For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit, 19 in which He went and proclaimed/preached to the spirits in prison, 20 because they formerly did not obey, when God's patience waited in the days of Noah, 

“Almost without exception in the NT, “spirits” (plural) refers to supernatural beings rather than to people…The word “prison” is not used elsewhere in Scripture as a place of punishment after death for humans beings, while it is used for Satan (Rev. 20:7) and other fallen angels (2 Pet. 2:4; Jude 6). In this case the message Christ proclaimed is almost certainly one of triumph…”

2 Pet. 2:4 – 4 For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into tartarus and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness to be kept until the judgment; 

Jude 6 - 6 And the angels who did not stay within their own position of authority, but left their proper dwelling, He has kept in eternal chains under gloomy darkness until the judgment of the great day—

1 Pet. 4:6 - For this reason, the gospel was preached also to those who are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit.  

Christ rose from the place of the dead, and raised up the race of Adam from the grave below.  Melito (c. 170, E), 8.757.

The Lord was made “the First-Begotten of the dead.” Receiving into His bosom the ancient fathers, He has regenerated them into the life of God.  Irenaeus (c. 180, E/W), 1.455.

For their benefit, “He also descended into the lower parts of the earth,” to behold with His eyes the state of those who were resting from their labors. ...For Christ did not come merely for those who believed on Him in the time of Tiberius Caesar. Nor did the Father exercise His providence only for the men who are presently alive. Rather, He exercised it for all men altogether, who from the beginning...have both feared and loved God.  Irenaeus (c. 180, E/W), 1.494.

It was for this reason, too, that the Lord descended into the regions beneath the earth, preaching His advent there also. And He [declared] the remission of sins received by those who believe in Him.  Irenaeus (c. 180, E/W), 1.499.

He gathered from the ends of the earth into His Father's fold the children who were scattered abroad. And He remembered His own dead ones, who had previously fallen asleep. He came down to them so that He might deliver them.  Irenaeus (c. 180, E/W), 1.506.

For three days He dwelt in the place where the dead were, as the prophet said concerning Him. “And the Lord remembered His dead saints who slept formerly in the land of the dead. And He descended to them to rescue and save them.” The Lord Himself said, “As Jonah remained three days and three nights in the whale's belly, so will the Son of man be in the heart of the earth.”  Irenaeus 

The Lord preached the Gospel to those in Hades. ...Do not [the Scriptures] show that the Lord preached the Gospel to those who perished in the flood, or rather had been chained, as to those kept in ward and guard? And it has been shown also...that the apostles, following the Lord, preached the Gospel to those in Hades. ...If, then, the Lord descended to Hades for no other reason but to preach the Gospel (as He did descend), it was either to preach the Gospel to all, or else to the Hebrews only. If, accordingly, He preached to all, then all who believe will be saved on making their profession there—even though they may be Gentiles. For God's punishments are saving and disciplinary, leading to conversion. He desires the repentance, rather than the death, of a sinner. This is especially so since souls, although darkened by passions, when released from their bodies, are able to perceive more clearly. For they are no longer obstructed by the paltry flesh. ...Did not the same dispensation obtain in Hades? For even there, all the souls, on hearing the proclamation, could either exhibit repentance, or confess that their punishment was just, because they did not believe. And it was not arbitrary that they could obtain either salvation or punishment. For those who had departed before the coming of the Lord had not had the Gospel preached to them. So, they had been given no opportunity to either believe or not believe.  Clement of Alexandria (c. 195)

He preached the Gospel to those in the flesh so that they would not be condemned unjustly. So how is it conceivable that He did not for the same reason preach the Gospel to those who had departed this life before His coming?  Clement of Alexandria (c. 195, E), 2.492.

Hades is not supposed by us to be a bare cavity, nor some subterranean sewer of the world. Rather it is a vast deep space in the interior of the earth. ...For we read that Christ in His death spent three days in the heart of the earth. ...He did not ascend into the heights of heaven before descending into the lower parts of the earth. This was so that He might there [in Hades] make the patriarchs and prophets partakers of Himself.  Tertullian (c. 210, W), 3.231.

[Christ is Lord of] things under the earth, because He was also reckoned among the dead. For He preached the Gospel to the souls of the saints. Through death, He overcame death.  Hippolytus (c. 200, W), 5.209.

[John the Baptist] also first preached to those in Hades, becoming a forerunner there when he was put to death by Herod. So even there, too, John revealed that the Savior would descend to ransom the souls of the saints from the hand of death.  Hippolytus (c. 200, W), 5.213.

Christ delivered the first man of earth from the lowest Hades, when he was lost and bound by the chains of death. ...This is He who was to become the preacher of the gospel to the dead.  Hippolytus (c. 205, W), 5.170.

The jailers of Hades trembled when they saw Him. And the gates of brass and the bolts of iron were broken. For, look! The Only-Begotten, God the Word, had entered Hades with a soul—a soul among souls.  Hippolytus (c. 205, W), 5.194.

It was the same among the dead. Christ was the only free person there, and His soul was not left in Hades. As a result, then, He is the first and the last.  Origen (c. 228, E), 10.315.

When Christ became a soul, without the covering of the body, He dwelled among those souls who were also without bodily covering. And He converted those of them who were willing.  Origen (c. 248)

Meanwhile, Hades was resplendent with light. For the Star had descended to there. Actually, the Lord did not descend into Hades in His body, but in His spirit. In short, He is working every­where. For while He raised the dead by His body, by His spirit He was liberating souls. ...For the Lord had conquered Hades, had trodden down death.  Alexander of Alexandria (c. 324)

TEXT - ROMANS 7:14-24

2 "Roman Roads" of Interpretations - Romans 7

1. Paul is describing his current situation/struggle as a Christian - Portrays the experience of believers after their conversion. They have died and risen with Christ with the capacity to renounce sin. Yet as children of Adam, they continue to possess a sinful nature that dogs their well-intended efforts to do what is right. This sets up the struggle that Paul presents in this chapter. It is his struggle and every believer’s struggle until the return of Christ.

2. Paul is describing his past before Christ - Romans 7 presents Paul’s description of his own struggle prior to his conversion to Christ. Paul describes the unregenerate state in which he (and, by extension, others) struggles to do what is right [under the law] and confesses to sin’s repeated victories prior to the entrance of the Spirit into his life.

ROMANS 7 Commentary/Interpretation

“If Paul was describing the dilemma of a Christian in verses 13-25, then “in my spirit” (rather than “in my inner being”) would have been the natural phrase to describe the source of a Christian’s longing for God. But Paul avoids “S/spirit” language throughout this whole passage since it DOES NOT APPLY to the one who does not belong to Christ”. (pg. 745, Life in the Spirit New Testament Commentary)  

“Most of the early church fathers thought that these verses described an unregenerate person. Augustine as well, but he changed his position after the controversy with Pelagius. Almost all of the reformers held to the regenerate interpretation. It was the basis of Luther’s ‘simul iustus et peccator.’” (simultaneous justified and sinner) - Nick Campbell 

“It should be of interest to the reader that Romans 7 was never interpreted as a believer in the first 300 years of the Christian Church.” – James Shelly

“The Greek Fathers, during the first three hundred years of church history, unanimously interpreted this scripture as describing a thoughtful moralist endeavoring, without the grace of God, to realize his highest ideal of moral purity. Augustine, to rob his opponent Pelagius of the two proof-texts, originated the theory that the seventh of Romans delineated a regenerate man” - Dr. Daniel Steele

“The more ancient teachers of the Church had unanimously explained it of the man who has not yet become a Christian, nor is upheld in the struggle by the Spirit of Christ” - Tholuck

“Among those who reject this teaching (a regenerate man in vv. 14-25), the view of the Greek fathers prevails. It is worthy of note that this is the earlier opinion and was accepted by nearly all who spoke as their mother-tongue the language in which this epistle was written.” - Joseph Abgar Beet

“In analyzing the early Christian understanding of Romans 7 it has become very clear that the early church did not understand this passage to teach the necessity of sin in believers, usually attributing to it the interpretation that it was a man who was striving to please God under the Law of Moses. In fact, this interpretation was so prevalent that when discussing this passage around 415AD, Pelagius [said]… 'that which you wish us to understand of the apostle himself, all Church writers assert that he spoke in the person of the sinner, and of one who was still under the law...' Augustine, in his attempt to refute this statement of Pelagius, was unable to offer any church writers who disagreed with Pelagius.” - Daniel Jennings

TEXT - ROMANS 6:1-7, 11-22

TEXT - ROMANS 8:2-13

DO WE STILL HAVE A "SIN NATURE"?

We have a “sin nature” before we were saved. As believers, we have the Holy Spirit living within us. We still have an unrenewed mind.  In as much as our mind is unrenewed, we still have ungodly emotions.  But this is NOT our Nature now. I have sinful propensities in my emotions and in my thinking, but they are getting changed little by little (process) the more I renew my mind.  To say I have no sin propensity, even though I no longer have a sin nature, isn’t true.  I have propensities to sin in my emotions, my thinking and my bodily desires but NOW have the ability to challenge them and have victory… Some people over-exaggerate it and say we have none of this and they are living in total unreality and dishonesty to say that they don’t have sinful thought processes, emotions or sinful desires in your body.

Roman 6:11 – “Consider yourself to be DEAD TO SIN” 

Meaning - Sin nature killed = free from the mandatory reign of sin, not sinful “feelings”) - “It didn’t say that sin is dead in you. It didn’t say there are no more sinful promptings in the life of a believer. It doesn’t say you’ll never feel anger again. It didn’t say that sinful feelings are dead in you. That is NOT what is says and that’s how a lot of people read it… It says that you are dead to the ‘reign of sin’… You are no longer in the place where you are under the mandatory slavery of sin.  The feelings still arise, but you have the power to challenge them”.

2 Cor. 5:17 - “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.”

Gal 2:20 - “I have been crucified with Christ…