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Through this 30 year period
many of the time signs Jesus gave in Matthew chapter 24 were being positively
identified; one of which was the advertising of the Kingdom
and the opportunity of sharing in its construction (Matthew
24:14). People of all nationalities came to take hold of this
unique opportunity, tens of thousands were harvested in as further
first fruits to the Kingdom (Romans 11:25).
Jesus warned that his brothers on Earth would be hated and killed. Individually and collectively they could expect pressures and problems from the Jewish and Pagan religious along with the Roman world power. Strangely the Greek scriptures are extremely un-informative on this opposition, seeing as how many of their numbers were executed, not so much as a 'whiff' of complaint is recorded. Or, perhaps it is not so strange when one realises this was no more than they were expecting and contracted to.
Having been warned by Jesus to anticipate this treatment, they did just that. They were willing to put up with it without moaning, knowing that they would very probably lose their lives to this opposition during their 'generation period'. Even the last surviving apostle in his writings makes no references to the murders and executions of his other apostle brothers. Their attitude was to uphold their side of the contract to death, looking forward to the rewards to come later. The furthest thing from their minds was building up any central world Church organisation, their structure was transitional and limited in its allotted time of existence.
| The First Century application
Start of the Abrahamic contract ends Kingdom contract Get out of . Start of the Kingdom contract matures Kingdom citizenship Get out of |
By the year AD 56 Paul wrote to his fellow Kingdom contractors expressing concern that the limited period they had left was by then greatly reduced (1 Corinthians 7:29 interlinear translations) (since AD 33 some 23 years had passed leaving only 14 years remaining). By the mid sixties this special Christian structure was coming to its end, the effects of the antichrist had started to eat in as Acts 20:29 says: "Oppressive wolves will come among you and will not treat the group with care and some among you will start speaking deceptive things to get the disciples following after themselves".. Later in 2 Peter 2:1 written about the year 64 it says: "There will be false teachers among you, quietly bringing in destructive sects and will disown even the owner, many follow their acts of loose conduct".
The first century recruitment work was drawing to its close, the allotted time was running out, God's special provision for giving out the power assistance of the spirit was coming to its end, the period was ending, the 'recruiting office' was closing down, the year 66 was fast approaching (1 Cor 13:8). As the days drew towards their finish a determined resolve was needed to hang on in until their lives ended. False non 'anointed' teachers were doing their best to draw away many, operating inside or on the fringe of their structure. These did not carry the spirit power, although possibly claiming they did, in order to gain credibility.
Not all among the congregations were 'adopted Sons'. As this deteriorating situation continued to develop some fell foul to the antichrist teachings, throwing away their lives and their tickets to the Kingdom. By the year 98 the very last ones who had held firmly onto their tickets were now all old and close to dying.
The last apostle remaining
alive, said in the year 98 at 1 John 2:18 "There are now many Christ
opposing deceivers, from this situation we know it is the
last hour." The last hour of the original unique
Christian structure had arrived, that generation of anointed had
all but died off. Following this there would be a very long period
when there would be no spirit anointed Christians alive on the Earth.
The exact number of 'ticketed' original Christians keeping their
side of the contract remaining faithful to death we do not know. But
whatever the number was, we do know it fell far short and this shortfall
will need to be made up at a later date (Rev 6:11, 7:3).
At the end of the first century
generation period the provision of the 'spirit helper' faded
away with the deaths of its carriers. Jesus' active involvement
with them through this generation leading up to the end of the Jewish
system came to its finish (Mat 28:20). Since then and
for the last 1,900 years the
spirit helper has not been
operative. It will become active again when God reintroduces its
distribution through Jesus' renewed activities at His appointed time
for new Kingdom recruits.
Our next time marker is defined by Jesus in Matthew 24:15-16 where he informed his disciples; "When you see the 'desolating thing' that causes destruction standing in a holy place, as referred to by Daniel, the reader should figure it out, then those in Judea should escape to the mountains". To understand this unusual sign, Jesus refers us back to the book of Daniel. At Daniel 12:11 the angel tells us that "From the time that the 'constant feature' or continual sacrifice is removed, and the 'desolating thing' that causes destruction appears, there will be 1,290 days until it all comes to its end".
What is this 'desolating thing' that causes destruction? The disciple Luke in his account of the same dialogue of Jesus, at Luke 21:20-21 written between 56 and 58, this time quotes Jesus as saying "When you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation has come near. Then those in Judea must flee to the mountains". By cross referencing these two statements of the same event, the 'desolating thing' that causes destruction proves to be the armies that encamped around Jerusalem. These armies history confirms as the Roman armies who came against Jerusalem in 66, withdrew and returned again in 70 to destroy it.
The very reason Jesus gave this warning to his disciples was so that when they identified the arrival of these destroying armies they could make a quick life saving exit. But, if the army is surrounding Jerusalem how could they escape the city? To get answers we need to take Jesus' advise and go back for the information in Daniel.
An angel is explaining to Daniel when the 'final things' would occur (Dan 12: 6-7), Daniel asks specifically: "What would be the last part of the final situation?" (vs 8) The answer came back "From the time that the regular burnt offering is taken away and the abomination that desolates is set up, there shall be one thousand two hundred and ninety days" (3years 7months). Verse twelve adds: "Happy is the one who survives and reaches the one thousand three hundred and thirty-five days" three years eight and a half months, or one and a half months longer.
So the call for the time to flee would be after three things had been witnessed.
First, when the regular burnt sacrifice had been stopped.
Second, when the 'desolating thing' had appeared marking the time to flee.
Thirdly, following these two events an opportunity should present itself making it possible for those responding to escape Jerusalem.
According to Josephus's record, in the summer of the year 66 a captain of the temple guard, Eleazar, persuaded some of the working shifts of priests officiating the sacrifices to occasionally reject the twice daily sacrifice made by the Jews on behalf of the Emperor and the people of Rome. Civil war had broken out in Jerusalem between a pro Roman division and a rebel alliance. About the 2nd of August 66, (15th Louis/Ab) Eleazar and his rebels besieged the fortress used by the Romans as their garrison. The removing of the the daily sacrifice to Rome coupled with outright attack on the Roman troops stationed in Jerusalem constituted a full declaration of war on Rome. Eleazar's nationally fanatic rebels held control of the temple, they made sure the daily sacrifices to Rome were no longer carried out.
Burnt
Sacrifices stopped August 66
2. When does the 'desolating
thing' 'Jerusalem
surrounded by armies', appear?
The Jewish rebellion roused Rome
to action. By early October 66, Cestius Gallus, with the 12th legion and
auxiliaries, about 18,000 men, marched into Israel on the 18th of October 66 (30th Hyperberetus, Tishri)
and camped around Jerusalem.
Desolating thing appears October 66 time to flee
3. How does an opportunity present
itself to flee Jerusalem.
Cestius, after lengthy negotiations
with various Jewish parties struck at Jerusalem with a full assault. The Jews
fought back; for five days the Romans attacked the walls
and on the sixth day they tried to break into the temple but the
Jews fought them off. The Romans resorted to undermining the
wall and setting fire to the gates. The Jews were panicking and
close to capitulation then suddenly, Gallus, for no seeming reason,
suspends the assault, abandons the siege and contrary to all expectation
retreats by the end of December 66.
Roman army withdraws December 66;
Opportunity to flee Jerusalem before the Roman armies
return.
Kingdom Contract Daily Sacrifice Removed |
Once the disgusting thing, the Roman armies,
had withdrawn from the city, the opportunity to flee Jerusalem
came. Many thousands of people who had heeded Jesus and his
disciples' warnings, fled and did not return. This separating
of themselves from the inhabitants of Jerusalem, resulted in
saving their lives. When the Romans did return to finish the task
they killed almost a quarter of a million inhabitants of Jerusalem,
no wonder Jesus wept when he predicted it (Luke 19:41-44).
The end of December AD 66.
The end of December of the year 66 marks our 9th time cue, all three markers of Jesus and Daniel's prophecies were by then in place.
1. The daily sacrifices for the Romans ceased October 66.
2. The Roman armies, the 'disgusting thing', appeared and withdrew by the end of December 66.
3. The way was opened to get out of this doomed city.
The end of December 66 brings us to the close of scene three.
The Ninth time cue 2066
|
THE 9th TIME CUE, 1st APPLICATION ----------------------------------------------------------------- |
Also in chapter 8 is a further
list of 12 prophecies and events recorded in the book of
Daniel, signs to occur through the same 'generation' period as
the signs of Jesus. Of these 12 signs 6 were not in evidence during
the first application period. We can anticipate all 12 signs having
their major application marking this final 'generation' along with
the second application of
the 3 time prophecies in Daniel's template during the period 2033 to 2070.
The important 9th time
cue, December 66, is marked by the appearance of the 'detestable desolating
thing' as prophesied by Daniel and also by Jesus in Matthew 24:15. This desolating thing should be anticipated to reappear
on the world stage.
In the first century the
desolating thing proved to be the Roman armies encamped around
Jerusalem. So what in the final application
period is the 'desolating thing' assuming the role of the Roman
armies? What is the corresponding modern day 'wrongful daily sacrifice'
made to the Romans that was stopped? Once again when they have
been identified, the warning to 'flee' goes out in order to avoid
a similar destruction that came to Jerusalem and will come on Christendom.
The parallel date for the 31st of December 66 when the Roman armies
unexpectedly withdrew aligns with the plotted date December 2066.
It has previously been suggested the head could possibly identify the recovery of the Russian world power. This eighth world power beast, after recovering, over the next 30 years draws to itself a large contingency of supporting nations (Rev 17:12,16), suggesting that it builds a confederacy of national allies. It is this fully recovered eighth world power that takes on the mantle of the original Roman power.
The events involving the
Jewish nation and the destructive Roman world power can be re-run examining
their developments within this second application.
During the first performance the Jews were initially willing subjects to the Roman world power, offering religious sacrificial ceremonies on its behalf at their temple in Jerusalem. However, the appointed Roman governor Gessius Florus had inflamed the hatred of the Jews against him through his oppressive and corrupt management of their affairs.
In August 66 some factions
of the Jewish nation took affairs into their own hands,
withheld their taxes and stopped the sacrifices at the temple
on behalf of the Romans. These acts of revolt were followed
by a massacre of the Roman guard in Jerusalem on the 26th of August
66. The city of Jerusalem then became dominated by Jewish rebels
bringing the entire nation into a state of war with the Roman world
power.
At some stage representatives of these national powers will, like Florus, deal oppressively with sections of Christendom, inciting hatred and rebellion from within certain denominations. Retaliation leads to the withdrawal of Christendom's political support and religious intercessions on behalf of these national powers. According to the pattern this could well be followed by some outrageous rebellious acts around August 2066, bringing Christendom into a state of conflict with the leading world power.
By October 2066 Christendom may have stopped performing religious services on behalf of the world power, causing this 'constant feature' to be removed, removing their services of support, ceremonies, prayers and blessings, instructing their members not to co-operate with the political powers. These acts lead to its eventual destruction. From then on the 'King of the South', the modern Jerusalem Christendom, enters a period of 'pushing' against the 'King of the North', the prevailing world political power (Dan 12:11, 8:13, 11:40).
The Jewish revolt brought the
Roman armies under Cestius Gallus and the laying siege to Jerusalem. Following
protracted negotiating, the army attacked. After only six days of fighting,
with Jerusalem on the brink of defeat, Gallus inexplicably withdrew and
retreated by the end of December 66. This brought a short period of time
when people could heed Jesus' warning and those of his Kingdom representatives
to flee Jerusalem and avoid its coming destruction.
In the second performance the Eighth world power will attack Christendom at the end of December 2066 then just when it looks like destroying Christendom, for some unexplained reason it withdraws, This allows many in Christendom's religions to respond to the warning and escape destruction with it (Daniel 11:41).
Christendom, like the Jews,
will presumptuously assume the withdrawal is because God
is protecting her. According to the prophecy pattern, the king
of the north will return, but not before the people are warned
by the remaining representatives of the anointed group on earth, to
get out from these doomed religious denominations and join themselves
to God's Kingdom representatives (Luke 21:20-22).
At this point in time Revelation 18:4 says: "'Get out' of the
city Babylon the Great, if you do not want to be judged as sharers
in her sins, and receive the same punishment" . These words are
strikingly similar to Jesus' warning to get out of Jerusalem at
Matthew 24:15-22. Just as in the first century many
people although not anointed Sons, took notice of their warning. So
a great crowd of people, other sheep (John 10:16) will heed
the warning given by the remaining anointed members of the Kingdom still
serving on earth to get out of Christendom before it is destroyed and
them along with it (Rev 7:9).
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