God's Veiled Message

And they shall make an ark of shittim wood: two cubits and a half shall be the length thereof, and a cubit and a half the breadth thereof, and a cubit and a half the height thereof.

Exodus 25:10

One point shared by Matthew, Mark, and Luke was that at the time of the death of Jesus the veil of the temple was torn from top to bottom.  God had opened access into the most holy place.  In doing so, He also shared with us a secret message.  Actually, it was a message that was there for mankind to see the whole time as it is clearly recorded in the scripture above.  Paul, himself, may even have alluded to it in this scripture, "That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God."  So how do we comprehend this veiled message?  We take a look at the Ark of the Covenant which sat behind the veil.

It seems unusual that God suddenly changed the dimensions of the Ark to half units when all of the other furniture was measured in whole units with a detectable message in their measurements.  For instance, the brazen altar measured 5 cubits x 5 cubits x 4 cubits.  5 is commonly known to symbolize grace while 4 stands for the world or creation.  Therefore, the message of the brazen alter by measurements is: grace upon grace for the world through an atoning sacrifice.  This sacrifice is Christ.  Doesn't John 3:16 clearly give this message?  So then, why the change beyond that curtain?  It was a veiled message, of course!

Let's look at those measurements closely-- 1 1/2 cubits x 1 1/12 cubits x 2 1/2 cubits (1.5 x 1.5 x 2.5 cubits). How many half cubits is one and a half cubits?  It would be 3 half cubits and 3 is a number with a clear meaning.  Three means what is real or complete.  It is also a number that relates to God--specifically the Trinity--one God eternally coexisting in three persons.  Two and a half cubits is 5 half cubits.  As mentioned above, five relates to grace.  So there is a message about God's grace hidden in the ark.  That makes sense since it was on the ark that the atoning blood was sprinkled and accepted.  God gives grace.

However, there is much more to the message.  The ark's shape is basically that of a rectangular prism like the one shown here.

In the diagram (S2) and (S3) would be the depth and height.  Both of these dimensions were given as one and a half cubits in Exodus 25:10.  That means the ends of the ark were in a square shape.  It also means that the perimeter of each end could be found by multiplying 4 x 1 1/2.  The perimeter of each end was 6 cubits, and 6 is the number for man.  Again, in the diagram (S1) would be the length measurement and Exodus informs us that it was two and one half cubits.  This would mean that to find the perimeter of the front we would add 1 1/2 + 2 1/2 + 1 1/2 + 2 1/2.  The front's perimeter is 8 and that is the biblical number symbolizing a new beginning.

Now, lets put those four number's together in the order we found them-- 3, 5, 6, 8.  These numbers in this order would mean: "The Trinity by grace gives man new beginnings."  What a secret message!  Actually, it is not a secret.  It is the master theme of scripture.  Christ's atoning death at the cross gives us new beginnings if we will confess our sin and call on Him.  What grace!

The mercy seat, which was the lid to the ark, did not have a means for the six to be figured in and this is also a clear message.  Salvation is the work of God and His grace.  Man has nothing to do with it.

One last note, the instrument of grace was the cross on which Jesus Christ our Lord suffered and died.  What do you get when you unfold a rectangular prism?

 

You get a cross!  My friend, it is no secret.  God loves you and wishes to extend His grace to you so that you, too, may have new beginnings.  Won't you call on Him today?  Please pray!  He is Soon2Come!!

  Here is an old post with similar information.  Blessings!!

Jesus Christ--Soon2Come: YHWH who...!

Imminent Danger

They that did feed delicately are desolate in the streets: they that were brought up in scarlet embrace dunghills.

Lamentations 4:5

What a dreaded and fearful sight!  Jeremiah the prophet, a failure by today's standards in that he won very few to his "mega-church movement", was forced to watch his beloved nation fall under the mighty hand of God's wrath for their sin.  Had they only heard his Holy Spirit inspired warnings!  The story may have been much different.  Now, as the scripture above says, those who were brought up in a prosperous land were made to embrace dunghills.  This verse is a tell.  It shows God's hand and the last great sign before the imminent danger of judgment--prosperity.

What do Sodom and Gomorrah, Noah's day, Judah, and Mystery Babylon all have in common as far as judgment is concerned?  They were all in times of prosperity just prior to their individual judgment.   Ezekiel comments on Sodom and says that there was abundance of bread (prosperity) and idleness in the land (shaqat--peace; a false sense that all was OK in the land due to the abundance even while the land was a moral cesspool--Ezekiel 16:49).  Jesus mentioned that it was a time of prosperity as well in Sodom.  He then parallels Noah's day as a time of prosperity too in Luke 17:26-27.  "They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and the flood came, and destroyed them all. Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded;..."  There was plenty to go around so why focus on such "negative" messages?  Why harp on topics such as judgment or accountability? The above scripture from Lamentations also speaks of prosperity when it says that they who were brought up in scarlet in Jerusalem were later seen digging in the trash.  Finally, read Revelation 18 for a description of the state of Mystery Babylon just before its demise. 

Jeremiah relates a very disconcerting fact about those who suffered through the destruction of Judah in chapter 44 of his work.  Those who had fled to Egypt from the sword of the Babylonian's immediately fell back into gross sin and idolatry.  The prophet was frantic as he tried to reason with them.  He knew that their sin had brought this on them, but they only remembered the false sense of security that prosperity without morality brought them just before the decimation of their homeland.  Fathom the words of their flagrant rebellion against God, "But we will certainly do whatsoever thing goeth forth out of our own mouth, to burn incense unto the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto her, as we have done, we, and our fathers, our kings, and our princes, in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem: for then had we plenty of victuals, and were well, and saw no evil (Jeremiah 44:17)."  In short, we will follow our own ways and our own idols because we had plenty when we did things our way!

It seems that the same spirit of deception is rampant in America that was prevalent in all of the places named above.  Many are there who support candidates simply because of the promise of great economic bounty for the land, yet those candidates also promote murder (aka. abortion), homosexuality, pedophilia, pornography, and every other godless way while working tirelessly to remove anything associated with God from the public arena.  Have they forgotten the words of scripture?  "Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people (Proverbs 14:34).  Do you know where I learned that scripture?  It was in the front of a Bible that was given to my dad when he was in the US Air Force in the late 1950s.  Just today I saw the pictures of a chapel on a camp in Afghanistan where a cross had to be removed from site.  However, in the same camp a homosexual pride flag was blatantly flown.  How much have things changed in one generation?  Such a duality!  Why is it that those who are so near to the ax laid at the base of the tree can't see the impending disaster?  

Solomon wrote that there is nothing new under the sun.  This message came about while I was researching for a study of 2 Peter.  Last week, a church member mentioned that much of what I said at a Wednesday night study sounded like a book he was reading called America's Last Call by David Wilkerson written in 1998.  Of all of his works, I had never read that one, but when the member let me borrow it, I could not put it down.  Much of what I said above was revealed in that book and could serve as a brief synopsis.  Earlier today, a friend's Facebook posting of Galatians 6:7-8 led me to write out what I have spent a few weeks studying. We are too focused on the temporal, material "blessings" in America.  However, we desperately need to be concerned about the gross and rampant sin that is infesting each and every part of our society.  The problem is that too many see their "things" and reason that God is blessing.   Many feel that there are just too many praying believers in America for God to judge.  This is the same attitude that was prevalent in Judah before the Babylonians came.  They even had the temple as assurance.  God, however, had warned them not to trust in a building as assurance but to trust in His word.  

There is a tipping point.  A point where the sin of the Amorites reaches its fill (Genesis 15:16).  A place where God even tells His servants to stop their intercession as He will hear it no more as He told Jeremiah.  "Therefore pray not thou for this people, neither lift up a cry or prayer for them: for I will not hear them in the time that they cry unto me for their trouble (Jeremiah 11:14)."  God told Isaiah that Judah had crossed a line where He would no longer purge the land of its sin until all were destroyed (Isaiah 22:14).  He also shared that same message with Ezekiel  about Jerusalem.  "In thy filthiness is lewdness: because I have purged thee, and thou wast not purged, thou shalt not be purged from thy filthiness any more, till I have caused my fury to rest upon thee (Ezekiel 24:13)."  There is a time of accountability for the shedding of innocent blood!  God have mercy.  Have we crossed that line?  Only God knows, yet the writing seems to be on the wall.  Interesting!  What was going on in Babylon the night the hand appeared and God pronounced sudden judgment?  All of the inhabitants of Babylon was partying and celebrating their prosperity.  They were oblivious to the Medo-Persian Army crawling under their walls until it was too late.

Stay focused on Christ and winning the lost.  They are the only treasures you can take to heaven with you.  Remember, Jesus Christ is Soon2Come!  

The True and The False

But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.

2 Peter 2:1

Like other portions of scripture, 2 Peter 1:16 through 2 Peter 2:3 appears to be in a chiastic structure.  Here the device is being used to compare and contrast the true ministers of the gospel with those that are false.  The photo below highlights this structure.  The apostle had a lot to say in those few short verses about what the true and the false witnesses for Christ look like.  In this time of great deception prior to the coming of the LORD, it would behoove us to take note.  Remember Christ's warning: " For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect."  Matthew 24:24

Simon Peter begins this pattern, under divine inspiration, with the definitive statement that the true witnesses are not telling " cunningly devised fables", but they are telling you the truth about Jesus Christ.  Noting Christ's power at His first advent (parousia is used for "coming" and means an advent), the apostle gives us our first clue.  True witnesses of Christ stay focused on Jesus as they tell of His power and presence in their lives.  They are telling what they received from God. There is no adding things nor making things up.  What have you received have from God in Christ?  Tell the world.  Yet, keep your focus on what God says and does as the apostles did in verses 1:16-18.  Say what He says only.


Verses 1:19-1:21 take us back to the written word of the prophets which Peter would have known so well.  Again, the prophets stay on topic--Jesus.  They give a sure word that the Messiah would come and they specifically outline His ministry.  Their word illuminates our heart because they also are not speaking their own thing.  There is a diligent relating of what the Holy Ghost says only. There is a lot of stress in these six verses on sharing what God says and not misinterpreting for selfish reasons.  This is what makes a true witness true.  He or she speaks the things of God and not the things of man.  They do not take the word and try to make it into a personal revelation.  They share God's interpretation.  Just one last note here.  Did you notice the stress on the Trinity?  The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit all speak and the focus stays squarely on our Advocate, Jesus.   For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time. 1 Timothy 2:5-6

Verse 2:1a is a somber warning.  "But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you..."  What makes false teachers and false prophets so successful?  They are like fishing lures or animal calls used to deceive, snare, and prey upon the unsuspecting and unawares.  They appear to be real.  To be sure that they are known for what they are, Peter clearly shares those bad fruits they possess.  So what is the first thing mentioned?  It is simple really.  If God spent so much time keeping us focused on Christ in the first verses, than it makes sense that demonically, fleshly inspired false witnesses would deny Christ and teach heretical things about Him.   Things like Jesus being a Muslim.  Christian prof says Jesus was Muslim

They would teach things that would make a Holy Savior and the only means of salvation be evil spoken of like:
Episcopal Church Clears Way for Transgender Ordination

Conservatives Grieve Episcopal Church's Approval of Gay Blessing Service

The point is that they would follow their own ideas, concepts, and philosophies about God and His word for their own selfish, "pernicious" reasons.  Peter then goes on to say how these false teachers will share a materialistic message that makes merchandise of the people of GOD.  Do I really need to go there? This is all very sad really because there is no future in being a false witness of Christ.  They will "  bring upon themselves swift destruction" and  "their damnation slumbereth not." 

Going back to the truth and being true to your witness, stay focused on Christ.  Truly, He is Soon2Come!

And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of.  and through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not. 2 Peter 2:2-3

Jailed For Jesus

And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them. And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one's bands were loosed.

Acts 16:25-26

Pastor Goes to Jail For Hosting Home Bible Study; Starts 60-Day Sentence Today

Pastor Goes To Jail For Home Worship - YouTube

Yesterday Pastor Michael Salman began his sixty day sentence for conducting a home Bible study in a building on his property. According to the Phoenix, Arizona prosecutors, this came down to zoning issues and permits.  He was not jailed for his preaching but for not keeping zoning laws.  So was the pastor out of line?  Was his insistence on having a Bible study at odds with God's injunction in Romans 13 to obey the laws of the land?  It is a bit of strange irony to understand that it was the apostle Paul who wrote this chapter in Romans.  Why?  He was the same fellow who wrote 2 Corinthians 11:23, "Are they ministers of Christ? (I speak as a fool) I am more; in labours more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequent, in deaths oft."  Paul was imprisoned often for disobeying the law of the land.  It would be nearly four hundred years before Christ was allowed to be preached in the Roman Empire.  In Paul's day the law clearly stated that only the official Roman religions could be preached, and Caesar worship took center stage.  Now the question could be asked is there a contradiction in the Bible concerning obeying the laws of a nation and preaching the gospel?

It seems at times that serving God and sharing His truth are at odds with the laws of the land.  Ask Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah (aka. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego).  The law of Babylon was very clear and explicit. "That at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, dulcimer, and all kinds of musick, ye fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath set up: And whoso falleth not down and worshippeth shall the same hour be cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace (Daniel 3:5-6)."   It is also clear that they willfully broke this law and that all knew it took place.  "Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego; these men, O king, have not regarded thee: they serve not thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up (Daniel 3:12)."   So what was God's opinion of all of this?  Ask Him!  He was there as He was the 4th man in the fire.

Simon Peter also understood that there are times when sharing the Gospel that delivers souls from eternal torment is more important than repressive laws that attempt to restrict its propagation.  This same Peter who just weeks prior had denied the LORD three times was now preaching about the risen Christ he had seen.  He had been warned by the priests and legal authorities to never mention that name nor share the message of the cross even while being beaten and whipped.  Did it stop him?  Not hardly.  In Acts 12 we find him imprisoned for sharing Christ when the legal authorities (Herod)  had him jailed.  So what did God think about this?  Ask Him!  He sent a mighty angel to release him.  I guess that was God's response.

We could ask so many from history what their opinion was.  There were hundreds, no thousands martyred for illegally preaching including all of the apostles except John.  There were those pesky preachers and servants of Christ who were burnt in the Lollard's Pit for passing out illegal English Bibles.  There are just so many to ask that I don't know where to go next.  Wait!  We could ask the Puritans and Pilgrims who helped to found this land.  Were they not escaping persecution from their governments for not worshiping in the prescribed and lawful way?  Maybe we should ask them?  Some of their descendants would form a near forgotten document called the Constitution of the United States of America that allowed the free exercise of religion because they did not want a repeat of what had happened to them in their nations of origin.

Maybe we should look for more current and contemporary witnesses?  Ask the unknown number of Chinese saints what they think as they conduct illegal services in their houses, barns, and local woods since Christianity is illegal in their Communist land.  How about the thousands who are forced to not mention the name of Christ in lands where Sharia law is in place?  Maybe we should ask those who have been raped, tortured, beaten, scarred, and burnt for illegally worshiping Christ in Muslim lands?  Just days ago 18 were  killed in Kenya.  Ask them!  Eighteen confirmed dead in church attacks in Kenya - Provo Christianity | Examiner.com Ask Youcef Nadarkhani for his thoughts as he awaits his execution in an Iranian jail for illegally preaching and failing to recant Christ. U.S. urges Iran to release Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani - UPI.com


Maybe we are asking the wrong person.  Let's ask Jesus.  Was he not crucified for preaching and setting up a kingdom contrary to the established Roman authorities?  That is what His accusers said.  They had him beaten, whipped, and nailed to a cross for preaching illegally.  Unlike the 18 in Kenya, you can ask Him now.  The grave could not hold Him.  His empty grave itself testifies to His answer.  Men's eternal souls are worth more to God than all of the repressive laws of man that try to stop the preaching of the cross that saves!  By the way, if you choose not to ask Jesus now, you won't have long to wait for His answer.  You will get it soon as He is Soon2Come!

Christ Alone

For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.

1 Corinthians 2:2

What is the enemy's chief strategy in this age of great deception just prior to the coming of Christ?  Simply, it is to change the person of Jesus Christ and to minimize His atoning work at the cross. Why else is there such an outcry when the name of Jesus is evoked?  It is because there is simply no salvation outside of trusting Jesus; therefore, Satan works overtime to sidetrack humanity about Jesus or risk they will come to forgiveness and saving grace.  Just the other day a cult group left literature on my doorstep.  In this particular cacophony of twisted theology Jesus is just an angel raised up by God to show us a better way to live.  Take Jesus out of this teaching and the major tenants of the religion still stand.  Actually, that is how it is with all false religion since they are all based off men's philosophies as to how to get to God.  Take out the founders and the basic teachings can stand alone.  Not so with Jesus.  You can not take Him out of true Christianity and have it stand.  Jesus Christ is Christianity.   Read and heed Jesus' warning in John 8:24b, "for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins."  No Christ, no cross, no salvation.  The LORD didn't show us  a way to heaven--He is the way!

It is amazing, truly a work of grace, that God would share such powerful truth to a messed up fellowship of believers such as those attending the Corinthian Church.  The list of sins that Paul had to address in this church was so embarrassing as to make this preacher blush just sharing them.  Already, an early form of Gnosticism was beginning to infect this gathering, and its first target was Jesus, of course.  To this Paul shares the very centerpiece of faith--Christ and Him crucified! He reminded them that he had not come to them to draw a following after himself or take time to promote his own ministry.  Paul revealed that his only goal was to share Messiah's cross for therein is salvation.  The Corinthians, however, being a church focused on the event of meeting in church rather than being an outreach to a lost world, were too busy focusing on their superhero preachers.  Thank the LORD we are not like that today!  Or are we?  Is our entire ministry devoted to entertaining folks at church or elsewhere or are we preaching Jesus Christ and Him crucified as the only available God given means to reach heaven?  As I heard asked recently, have we become a "come to" church offering a good time of worship or a "go ye" church sent to share grace, mercy, and salvation wrought in the person of Jesus Christ and His passion?

Since this church, like the folks rebuked in Laodicea (Revelation 3:14-22), was so focused on self to the point of excluding their mission to the world, Paul would later remind them of their purpose in 2 Corinthians.  What was the focal point of their purpose? It was to share God's plan of redemption and to act as ambassadors to a world at war and rebellion against the God who created all and loves so deeply.  "To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation  (2 Corinthians 5:19)."  We definitely are too obsessed with the temporal.  So, in closing, let me remind you what you can take to heaven with you.  Your car?  No it will burn someday with fervent heat.  That house you prayed so much for?  It too will burn.  Your fancy furniture--burn.  Your bank account filled with all that cash?  It too will fade away as the currency of Heaven is faith.  The only thing you can take to Heaven are your family friends and loved ones.  When eternity arrives, as an old song used to say, the only man made thing that makes it to Heaven are the scars on Jesus.  Don't let the enemy redirect your focus in these last days on the temporary and fleeting.  Focus on Jesus as He is surely Soon2Come!

Signs of the Soon Return

Barney Frank weds longtime partner; first congressman in same-sex marriage - NBC Politics

Gadgets work under your skin --- but are you ready?

Michael Salman Sentenced to 60 Days in Jail Over Home Bible Studies | Video | TheBlaze.com

Is Iran's show of force a real threat? - Inside Story - Al Jazeera English

A Fingerprint Scanner That Can Capture Prints From 20 Feet Away | Popular Science

California bill would allow a child to have more than two parents - State Politics - The Sacramento Bee

WHO | Undiagnosed illness in Cambodia - update

Has the normalizing of pedophilia begun?

Where Victory Lies

Each day another battle Lord, 

I have won so few,

Yet every time I'm by your side, 

The battle goes to you.

At times I try to fight by myself,

And begin to lose some ground,

Yet every time I call on You, 

You cut my enemies down.

At times I'll try my own weapons,

Only to see my defeat.

Then I'll draw your two edged sword, 

and the enemy must retreat.

At times it seems so hopeless Lord, 

I've seen dear loved ones fall,

Yet there is always victory

While I obey your Spirit's call.

The battle's nearly over now,

I see the signs each day,

Some have forgotten where victory lies,

O' Lord, open their eyes I pray.

When this battle is over, 

A victor's crown will be.

I truly don't deserve it Lord,

I cast my crown to thee.

© October 1985 written near Dexheim, Germany

The Dedicated One

By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God.

Hebrews 11:5

Enoch, what a man of God!  His entire life story,as short as it is, reminds us to remain steadfast in Christ in the midst of a perverse generation; furthermore, it reminds us of the hope that we too will one day be translated.  So what made Enoch a man so special that he was taken directly to heaven without seeing death?  His name itself gives us the clue.  Enoch means "dedicated".  


His day was a day of terrible sinfulness and selfishness too.  It was so bad that decades later God would destroy the entire world under a deluge while saving Enoch's great grandson, Noah, and his immediate family.  What a testimony.  His dedication to God in the midst of a world so corrupt that it would face judgement by a flood reminds us to remain as equally dedicated seeing that this world is on the verge of a cataclysmic encounter with the holiness of God Almighty.  While the love of many around you may be waxing cold due to the rise of sinfulness, there is a reward for those walking close to God as Enoch did.  Don't give up and don't give in.  

Not only did he live right in a wrong world, but his life was a testimony to those who willfully were in rebellion to God.  How much greater was that testimony when God took him home instantaneously?  I wonder what stories Lamech told his son, Noah. about his godly grandfather?  Could his life be a part of the reason that Noah was so diligent in preparing the ark and preaching to those around him?  The LORD knows.  It might just be the lives of faithful believers like you will be the tool God uses once the church rises even as Enoch did.

Just as death had no power over Enoch, death has no power over the believer because death has no power over our Lord and Savior Jesus.  Walk with Him as dedicated as Enoch did.  Soon all will see that death has no dominion over Christ's bride.  Blessings!  Remember, Jesus Christ is Soon2Come!