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The New Covenant

Posted in #PaulthePoke, Gospel with tags blood, Communion, cross, cup, Ephesians 2, forgiveness of sin, Gentiles, Israel, Jeremiah 31, Jesus Christ, Jews, new covenant, sin on December 11, 2022 by paulthepoke

Scripture: Acts 15:1-34

Object Lesson: What is a covenant?

In today’s vernacular, loosely, a covenant is a contract, agreement or a treaty. It depends on the context. It is an agreement that one person agrees to do something, usually if some other person fulfills a condition.

This is the Old Testament word berith: a covenant, treaty, alliance, or league. Simply put, it is an agreement. From God’s perspective, a divine constitution or ordinance with signs or pledges.

As people, humanity struggles as covenant keepers. We are broken sinners.

The covenants that God made with Israel differed than the agreement described above. God made promises to Israel that were not dependent on anything that Israel did. God takes the initiative. He draws up the terms and defines the terms. God guarantees their keeping. Israel does nothing. God swears by His own Word.

Key Theme: The Power of the Blood of Christ

The New Covenant is found in Jeremiah 31:31-34. This everlasting covenant is made with nation Israel. God is the initiator and He is the one to will it to happen. A regenerated heart and mind and forgiveness of sin are promised as part of the agreement.

Jeremiah 31:31-34 “Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them, says the Lord. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.”

So how does this covenant with nation Israel affect us in the Church Age? The Church and Israel are separate. Nation Israel has yet to receive the benefit of the New Covenant. It is yet future in the Millennial Kingdom. How can this arrangement apply to us? The answer is in the blood of Christ.

Jesus’ death on the cross ushers in and ratifies the New Covenant (Matthew 26:28, Mark 14:24, Luke 22:20, 1 Corinthians 11:25).

It is His blood that is the covenant. The shedding of innocent blood allows for the forgiveness of sin. This is acceptable to God (Hebrews 9:14). According to the Law, all things are cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of innocent blood there is no forgiveness (Hebrews 9:16). Christ’s blood is the bleach that removes the stain of sin. As believers, we get the spiritual benefits of the agreement when we believe that Jesus died as payment for sin. As believers, we are sealed with the Holy Spirit.

Ephesians 2:12-16 instructs us that we were separate from Christ and excluded from nation Israel. Translation, we were not a benefactor of the New Covenant. The text teaches us that we were without hope. Thankfully, we were brought near by the blood of Christ. It is the blood of Christ that unifies the two groups (Jew and Gentile) into one group.

Ephesians 2:12-16 …that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity.

Romans 11:17 indicates that Gentiles were grafted into the root of the olive tree. We, Gentiles, were grafted because other original branches, Israel, were broken off. Gentiles get the full benefit of the root.

As we take communion and we hear the words, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” These words are a reminder that we, believers, have the spiritual benefits of the New Covenant: teaching of the Holy Spirit and forgiveness of sin. Communion is in memory of the work of Christ. He died once and for all to bear the sins of many (Hebrews 9:28). It is to be taken seriously (1 Corinthians 11:25-29).

We are to do this until He comes again.

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Shavuot/Pentecost/Feast of Weeks, 5782/2022

Posted in #PaulthePoke, Pentecost/Shavuot/Feast of Weeks, Prophecy with tags Apostle Paul, church, Ephesians 2, Gentiles, God's Appointments, High Priest, Jesus Christ, Jews, leaven, Leviticus 23, sin, two loaves bread on May 29, 2022 by paulthepoke

Leviticus 23:15-16 ‘You shall also count for yourselves from the day after the Sabbath, from the day when you brought in the sheaf of the wave offering; there shall be seven complete Sabbaths. You shall count fifty days to the day after the seventh Sabbath; then you shall present a new grain offering to the Lord.

On a Gregorian calendar in the year of 2022, the holiday of Shavuot/Feast of Weeks/Pentecost begins at sunset on Saturday, June 4. The God Appointed holiday ends at sunset Monday, June 6. The Feast takes place in the month of Sivan on the 6th and 7th of a Hebrew calendar. This is the Hebrew year 5782.

Exodus 23:14-17 “Three times in the year you shall keep a feast to me. You shall keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread. As I commanded you, you shall eat unleavened bread for seven days at the appointed time in the month of Abib, for in it you came out of Egypt. None shall appear before me empty-handed. You shall keep the Feast of Harvest, of the first fruits of your labor, of what you sow in the field. You shall keep the Feast of Ingathering at the end of the year, when you gather in from the field the fruit of your labor. Three times in the year shall all your males appear before the Lord GOD.

Shavuot is one of the three holidays where Jewish men are required to come to Jerusalem. The men were to make their presentation and sacrifice before God at the Temple. This holiday is one of seven holidays appointed by God.

Shavuot/Pentecost, Part 1

Two loaves of bread are made from the new wheat harvest. The loaves are made with leaven. The Biblical symbol for sin is leaven. The two loaves of bread at Shavuot are the only sacraments made with leaven.

Some believe that one loaf represents the Jewish people and the other loaf represents the Gentiles. The loaves represent the church which is comprised of Jews and Gentiles. Sinful people, Jews and Gentiles, are formed with the first fruits of the wheat harvest. (And yes, the church was and is still sinful despite being saved by the grace of God.) The loaves are brought and waived by the Son, the High Priest, before the Father.

http://www.messiah3.org/pentecostfeast.htm

Ephesians 2:11-22 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, 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. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For He Himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility 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, and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. And He came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. For through Him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In Him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.

Together, sinful Jews and sinful Gentiles sealed with God the Spirit worshiping God the Father through the sinless God the Son.

Which begs the question…

How long before the two loaves of bread, the church, are waived by our High Priest before the Lord in Heaven?

Shavuot/Pentecost, Part 2

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Jewish Prayer on the Temple Mount, December 2019

Posted in #PaulthePoke, Prophecy, Temple, Trend Update with tags jerusalem, Jews, prayer on December 15, 2019 by paulthepoke

Matthew 24:15 “So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand) …” -Jesus

Jesus is quoting the prophet Daniel. There will be a temple during the end times scenario and tribulation. Yes, Jesus knew the sacrificial system would no longer be necessary because of His future death, burial, and resurrection for sin.

1 Corinthians 3:16-17 Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.

All that said, the idea of a third temple is still prophetic per Christ Himself.

Temple Mount, December 2019: Jews are returning to the Temple Mount to pray. And prayers are being done in front of policing authorities. In the recent past, Jewish worshipers would be removed if observed praying on the Mount.

Muslim and Jewish authorities both indicate there has been no official change in status regarding prayer.

Rabbi Eliyahu Weber and 10 others sang, “Let us go up to the Temple” and repeated prayers. This was a shortened version of the morning prayer service. The proceedings were completed under no pressure from authorities. The worshiping Jews were not asked to leave the Temple Mount.

Rabbi Weber states he ascends the Temple Mount almost every day. Weber also had the following comments.

“Our ascent to the Temple Mount makes known God’s name in the World.”

“The essence of our presence on the Temple Mount shows that this place belongs to the Jewish people. If we don’t come, (it appears) that it doesn’t interest us. The Temple Mount is ours, and we need to know the importance of being there.”

“The ultimate goal is to be able to offer sacrifices in the Temple. We are not really dealing with that right now because there are many stages to this.”

Weber appears to be realistic about the prospects of the return of the Temple.

“We are dealing more with restoring prayer to the site in an orderly fashion. I would love for it to be tomorrow, but offering sacrifices sounds to be a bit more distant.”

Click on the link below for video of the prayer service.

https://www.jpost.com/Arab-Israeli-Conflict/Jewish-prayer-has-returned-to-the-Temple-Mount-exclusive-610781

An increasing number of Jews are visiting the Temple Mount. In 2019, it is estimated 29,000 have ascended.

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Pentecost/Shavuot/Feast of Weeks: Two Loaves of Bread

Posted in Pentecost/Shavuot/Feast of Weeks with tags Apostle Paul, church, Ephesians 2, Gentiles, God's Appointments, High Priest, Jesus Christ, Jews, leaven, Leviticus 23, sin, two loaves bread on May 16, 2018 by paulthepoke

Leviticus 23:15-20 You shall count seven full weeks from the day after the Sabbath, from the day that you brought the sheaf of the wave offering. You shall count fifty days to the day after the seventh Sabbath. Then you shall present a grain offering of new grain to the LORD. You shall bring from your dwelling places two loaves of bread to be waved, made of two tenths of an ephah. They shall be of fine flour, and they shall be baked with leaven, as firstfruits to the LORD. And you shall present with the bread seven lambs a year old without blemish, and one bull from the herd and two rams. They shall be a burnt offering to the LORD, with their grain offering and their drink offerings, a food offering with a pleasing aroma to the LORD. And you shall offer one male goat for a sin offering, and two male lambs a year old as a sacrifice of peace offerings. And the priest shall wave them with the bread of the firstfruits as a wave offering before the LORD, with the two lambs. They shall be holy to the LORD for the priest.

In the Old Testament and in the Hebrew, this holiday is referred to as Shavuot. The word means: weeks.

Shavuot is one of the three holidays where Jewish men are required to come to Jerusalem (Exodus 23:14-17). The men were to make their presentation and sacrifice before God at the Temple. This holiday is one of seven holidays appointed by God.

Shavuot and Pentecost are synonymous. Shavuot is often associated with God giving the Torah, the birth of Judaism. Pentecost is often associated with God giving the Holy Spirit, the birth of the church.

On a Gregorian calendar in the year of 2018, the holiday of Shavuot/Feast of Weeks/Pentecost begins at sunset on Saturday, May 19. The God Appointed holiday ends at sunset Monday, May 21.

http://www.messiah3.org/pentecostfeast.htm

Together, sinful Jews and sinful Gentiles sealed with the God the Spirit worshiping God the Father through the sinless God the Son.

Which begs the question…

How long before the two loaves of bread, the church, are waived by our High Priest before the Lord in Heaven?

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Purim: Haman Gonna Hate

Posted in Purim, Trend Update with tags Adar, Esther, Haman, Iran, Jews, Mordecai, Persia on February 26, 2018 by paulthepoke

Esther 9:20-22 Then Mordecai recorded these events, and he sent letters to all the Jews who were in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, both near and far, obliging them to celebrate the fourteenth day of the month Adar, and the fifteenth day of the same month, annually, because on those days the Jews rid themselves of their enemies, and it was a month which was turned for them from sorrow into gladness and from mourning into a holiday; that they should make them days of feasting and rejoicing and sending portions of food to one another and gifts to the poor.

This is the decree for the celebration of the holiday Purim. The celebration is to take place in the Hebrew month of Adar on the 14^th and 15^th day. Adar is the last month of a Hebrew year. In the Gregorian year of 2018, that starts on the evening Wednesday, February 28 and ends the next day on the evening of Thursday, March 1. Scripture tells us the holiday is to be celebrated every year.

secrettelaviv.com

The setting of the story is in the book of Esther. The author of the book is unknown. Celebration of Purim is not part of the Mosaic Law. The events of the story took place from 483-473 BC. God’s name is never mentioned in the book. The location is Susa of the Persian Empire. This is modern day Iran.

Haman is a source of evil. His name means tumult or noise. Haman was the prime minister for King Ahasuerus. He answered to only the king.

Esther 3:1 After these things King Ahasuerus promoted Haman the Agagite, the son of Hammedatha, and advanced him and set his throne above all the officials who were with him.

Haman lays out his plan to destroy the Jewish people in Esther 3. Haman’s plan was the result of Mordecai refusing to bow to him. Haman was on a power trip and frequently angry.

Esther 3:5-6 And when Haman saw that Mordecai did not bow down or pay homage to him, Haman was filled with fury. But he disdained to lay hands on Mordecai alone. So, as they had made known to him the people of Mordecai, Haman sought to destroy all the Jews, the people of Mordecai, throughout the whole kingdom of Ahasuerus.

Haman was deceitful and manipulative to the king regarding the need to rid the kingdom of the Jews.

Esther 3:8-9 Then Haman said to King Ahasuerus, “There is a certain people scattered abroad and dispersed among the peoples in all the provinces of your kingdom. Their laws are different from those of every other people, and they do not keep the king’s laws, so that it is not to the king’s profit to tolerate them. If it please the king, let it be decreed that they be destroyed, and I will pay 10,000 talents of silver into the hands of those who have charge of the king’s business, that they may put it into the king’s treasuries.”

In the end, Haman’s plans were his undoing. What he prepared for Mordecai was ultimately for himself.

Esther 7:9 Then Harbona, one of the eunuchs in attendance on the king, said, “Moreover, the gallows that Haman has prepared for Mordecai, whose word saved the king, is standing at Haman’s house, fifty cubits (approximately 75 feet) high.” And the king said, “Hang him on that.”

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Trend Update, Revived Roman Empire, May 2014

Posted in Prophecy with tags 2 Thessalonians 2, Antichrist, Holy Spirit, Israel, Jesus, Jews, Joel, Muslims, Pope Francis, Prophecy, Rapture, Restrainer, Resurrection, Roman Empire, Temple, Vatican on May 28, 2014 by paulthepoke

Memorial Day weekend proved to be an interesting time in the Holy Land. The Pope, Francis, visited the Middle East. There are many who think the Pope will be the Anti-Christ. The Roman Empire is being revived, so they say. Many have identified the Pope as the Anti-Christ. I would also encourage everyone to remember the Roman Empire had an eastern leg which included modern day Turkey, Iraq, and Syria.

The Pope had an interesting trip. He called for interfaith toleration and unity between the Muslims and the Jewish people. He visited the Muslim Dome on the Temple Mount and the Jewish Western Wall. He endorsed dividing the land and acknowledging a Palestinian state. With all due to respect to the pontiff, I would encourage him to read the Book of Joel. God says, “Do not divide My land.” This is not a good idea and not in accordance with God’s will.

The Pope has requested a peace meeting or summit next month (June 2014) at the Vatican between the Muslims and the Jews. I expect the Pope or somebody to invoke Father Abraham as a bridge to peace at some point in the future.

2 Thessalonians 2:1-8 Now we request you, brethren, with regard to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, that you not be quickly shaken from your composure or be disturbed either by a spirit or a message or a letter as if from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. Let no one in any way deceive you, for it will not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, displaying himself as being God. Do you not remember that while I was still with you, I was telling you these things? And you know what restrains him now, so that in his time he will be revealed. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way. Then that lawless one will be revealed whom the Lord will slay with the breath of His mouth and bring to an end by the appearance of His coming…

Scripture tells us the Anti-Christ will NOT be revealed until the resurrection of the dead believers in Christ and the living believers in Christ are raptured into the clouds to meet Jesus. There is a lot of debate about the word “apostasy”. It is the word apostasia in the Greek. The word is transliterated. It can mean the following in the original Greek: a falling away, defection, or apostasy. The word is used one other time in the New Testament.

The key to the passage is noted later in these verses with the restrainer. Many take this “restrainer” to be the Holy Spirit who is indwelled in Christians. The restrainer will be removed when Christians are snatched into the clouds at the rapture by Jesus. Then, the Anti-Christ will be revealed and present himself to the world.

This passage also notes there will be a Jewish Temple. The Anti-Christ will present himself as being God in the temple. Currently, there is no Jewish Temple. But if we wake up one morning and there has been an agreement to rebuild the Temple…