How soon…..?
Pastor F. M. Riley
"So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom." Psalm 90:12
Dear brother, I DO NOT know that the rapture of New Testament believers has to fit within the holy days of the Jewish calendar, for the Lord's New Testament church is primarily a Gentile entity.
The Lord's church is not Jewish, and therefore it is possible that the church does not have to conform to the Jewish holy days. However, that question is up to the Lord. The church may indeed have to conform to them! We will soon see! If it is required that the prophecies regarding the Lord's church be fulfilled in accordance with the Jewish holy days, then it appears to me that everything predicted leading up to the rapture of the church is coming together like a hand fitting into a glove.
Brother, the Lord Jesus Christ rode into Jerusalem on the back of a donkey on the 10th day of Abib [Nisan] nearly 2,000 years ago in exact fulfilment of His appearance as the Messiah [King] predicted in Daniel 9:25, bringing the 69 weeks of Daniel to fulfilment on that exact day. Four days later He was crucified [cut off] in direct fulfilment of Daniel 9:26(a). The Lord Himself verified this truth three times in Luke 19, verses 40, 42, and 44. Then knowing how precise the Lord is all through His inspired Word, I see no Scriptural reason why the 70th week of Daniel may not commence right where the 69th week left off, with only the 2,000 years of GRACE intervening. If this should be the case [?], then the Tribulation period [the 70th week of Daniel] will begin on Abib 11 on the Jewish calendar which this year begins at sundown in Israel on March 25th. This date therefore then looms on the horizon as a distinct "possibility."
Quite significantly, the Jews back in November began building an altar according to the exact specifications set forth in the Scriptures. That altar is now complete! On January 12th KorbanPesach.org, a committee of the Sanhedrin in Jerusalem, sent an invitation to Jews all over the world to come to Jerusalem on Passover this year to reinstitute the actual, literal sacrifice of the Paschal Lamb. They plan to buy enough lambs so that every Jew who attends will be able to partake of the meat of their Paschal lamb exactly as specified in Exodus 12. They are anticipating at least a million Jews coming to Jerusalem to observe the Passover this year, which will occur on March 29-30.(Rabbinic date)
Remember that Peter in Acts 2:17-21, when speaking to the Jews in Jerusalem on the Day of Pentecost [Acts 2:5; 2:14; 2:22; 2:36; 2:39(a)], and transliterating from Joel's prophecy, clearly stated, "I will pour out of My Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams….." Both the context and the wording used here makes it clear that this statement is speaking of the Jewish people. This cannot be denied by anyone who understands the grammatical construction of sentences and has a real desire to "rightly divide the Word of truth," 2 Timothy 2:15. It clearly states that in these "last days" Jews would be given prophecies, would see visions, and dream dreams. I am aware that many people today claim they have been given these "gifts," but it is very obvious that some making the claim have and some haven't. 1 John 4:1-3 is still in the Bible! However, when I run across a Jew today who claims to have been given a prophecy or a vision or a dream, I pay a good bit more attention to their claim than I do that of Gentiles making a similar claim. Without apology to anyone!
Then in view of this inspired prophecy given by Peter, I think it is highly significant that…….
In 1217 the Jewish Rabbi Judah Ben Samuel prophesied that the Ottoman Turks would rule over the holy city of Jerusalem for eight Jubilees. A Jubilee is a period of 50 years according to Leviticus 25:8-13. Eight Jubilees would then be 400 years. Sure enough, 300 years later in 1517 the Ottoman Turks seized control of the city of Jerusalem and ruled over it for the next 400 years. They were finally driven out of the city and the holy land in 1917 by the Allied forces under the command of General George Allenby. The Rabbi's prophecy about the 400 years was fulfilled exactly to the year.
The Rabbi had also prophesied that during the ninth Jubilee Jerusalem would be a "no-man's land." This is exactly what happened from 1917 to 1967, due to the fact that the holy land was placed under British Mandate in 1917 by the League of Nations and literally "belonged" to no nation. Even after Israel's war of independence in 1948-49 Jerusalem was still divided by a strip of land running right through the heart of the city, with Jordan controlling the eastern part of the city and Israel controlling the western part of the city. That strip of land was considered and even called "no-man's land" by both the Israelis and the Jordanians. Anyone even stepping into that strip would be shot down. I lived during that period of time and well remember the reports in the newspapers and shown on TV about the division of Jerusalem. It was not until the Six Day War in 1967 when the entire west bank of the holy land was conquered by the Israeli army that the whole city of Jerusalem passed back into the possession of Israel. So once again the prophecy made by the Rabbi 750 years previously was fulfilled to the letter.
But that is still not the end of the matter. The Rabbi also prophesied that during the 10th Jubilee Jerusalem would be under the control of the Jews and the Messianic "end times" would begin. The 10th Jubilee began in 1967 and will be concluded in 2017. The Rabbi's prophecy has been fulfilled to the letter right up to this present day. There is then no Scriptural reason to believe it will not continue to be fulfilled exactly as it was given, until the conclusion of the seven year Tribulation in 2017. This then means that the pre-tribulation resurrection and rapture of New Testament believers will occur this very year; 2010, and that the Messiah and Saviour of Israel will return and establish His Millennial Kingdom in 2017, again fulfilling to the letter the Rabbi's prophecy.
But this still isn't the whole prophetic picture. During the 18th century [the 1700's] Rabbi Vilna Gaon prophesied that the Hurva Synagogue in Jerusalem, probably the most magnificent Jewish Synagogue in the entire world, would be destroyed and rebuilt twice, destroyed yet again and built a third time. He prophesied that when it was rebuilt the third time, then construction would begin on the [third… ?] Jewish Temple.
The Hurva Synagogue was first destroyed by the Muslims shortly after it was originally built. A hundred years later it was rebuilt a second time. Then it was destroyed for the second time by the Jordanian army during Israel's war of independence in 1948-49. It lay in ruins until 2001! That year the Israeli government and the Jewish people in Israel began rebuilding it again. Now here is the fascinating relation to end-time Bible prophecy…….
The Hurva Synagogue has just been completed, and is scheduled to be dedicated and officially opened in a grand ceremony in Jerusalem on March 15, 2010. Significantly, the Jewish Rabbinate in Jerusalem has already announced that the plans for rebuilding the Jewish Temple will be presented to the nation of Israel and the Jewish people on March 16, 2010. The Rabbi's prophecy wins again!
Our Lord's coming for His people is right at the door! Read Revelation 3:8.
Dear brother and dear readers, it is time for people to GET READY OR GET LEFT! Read John 3:3-7, 3:16, 3:36, 5:24, 14:6, Acts 4:12, 16:30-31, and Romans 10:8-13. DO IT TODAY! Tomorrow may be too late! 2 Corinthians 6:1-2. Then bow your head and your heart before the Lord and ask the Lord Jesus Christ to come into your heart and grant you true repentance and save you, cleanse you, and make you one of His children. The ONLY way anyone is ever "accounted worthy" is to have the "righteousness of Christ" imputed to you. Compare Luke 21:36 with 20:35-36, and then carefully read Romans 4:1-25.
Dear brother, I hope this answers your questions and gives you additional spiritual insight.
My greatest blessing is to be used of the Lord to minister His Word to His people, and to the lost who are seeking Him for salvation. Please keep me in your prayers. God bless you.
