When a Child is Born

6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor , The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. 7 Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this. (Isaiah 9)

These words are well known as they are often read at Christmas, predicting the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ. What do the words actually mean? His birth means that the Lord is human. He came down to Earth from Heaven, who is Christ, Lord of all. The word "wonderful" in the original Hebrew means "divine" and is only used of God. This means that this child of Christmas is God himself. Jesus Christ is truly divine and human, in perfect harmony.

During his earthly lifetime, the government never rested upon his shoulder. Instead he was arrested by the authorities, crucified, buried and rose again. This was necessary as Christ had to die for the sins of the world, as also prophesied by Isaiah (chapters 49:6, 53:1-10). After rising again he ascended back to heaven. He never sat upon the throne of David - the throne of the King in ancient Israel in Jerusalem. These promises, primarly to the nation Israel and also extending to the whole world, will be fulfilled in the future. Christ Jesus is coming to earth to put an end to sin and wickedness, to sit on the re-established throne of David and rule the nations with justice and righteousness. What a wonderful time that will be. Israel will not be vexed by neighbours determined upon her destruction. Israel will be living in peace and not fighting for her existence. The world will know peace and justice, and there will be no corrupt dictatorships and no deceitful governments (like our current British government) in this golden age. The peace promised 2000 years at the birth of Messiah will finally arrive. Those who put their trust in Messiah can enjoy this peace now and forever. Those who reject or ignore this Saviour will not enjoy this but go to a lost eternity.

"God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish , but have everlasting life. 17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved . 18 He that believeth on him is not condemned : but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil". (John 3:16-18)

The Mystery of Iniquity (and The European Union)

"For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work" (2 Thess 2:7, NIV).

I'm not a big fan of conspiracy theories but I do beleive that there is a flood of lawlessness directing events in today's world and preparing the way for the coming of the lawless one, the AntiChrist. The revived Roman empire, the European Union may be his kingdom or it may just be a fore-rerunner - time will tell. It is very sad that our unelected, contemptible Prime Minister Gordon Brown denied us the right of a referendum and just signed away British sovereignty in November. It is a reminder that the battle is spiritual and there are powers at work, controlled by the god of this age (Satan), who is trying to capture the souls of men and women.

The European Union is truly the work of Satan and human iniquity. The scattering and creation of nations is God's work, and constant attempts at world union is the work of man and goes back to The Tower of Babel (Babylon). Interestingly, in ancient Babylon there was an entrance gate covered with monsters and snake dragons, known as the Ishtar Gate. In 1913 the first pieces of this gate were brought to Berlin and by 1930 the entire gate was in that city. The wars that followed these events were not coincidences. Hitler wanted an economic and political union with all of Europe. Where Hitler failed, these unelected bureaucrats in Brussels have succeeded. The book of Revelation predicts a future downfall of Babylon. This may be the literal city of Babylon or a pseudonym. Either way, the Spirit of Babylon, the Mystery of Iniquity, is alive and well on planet earth today.

The NIV translates verse 7 as "the secret power of lawlessness". It is secret as most of the world are blissfully unaware of it. It is lawless because it operates by deception and wickedness.

We need, more than ever, to pray for our government and leaders. For those who are concerned with where world events are going, there is a way out and that is through trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Pre-Darby Rapture

Many Christians reject the doctrine of "The Rapture" and beleive it to be the invention of John Nelson Darby (1800-1882). Whilst he systematised the doctrine and propagated the doctrine of the pre-tribulational rapture, he did not invent the concept. I was delighted to find that "the rapture" was beleived by Puritan Matthew Henry and Reformed pastor John Gill in their commentaries on 1 Thessalonians 4. Whilst they were not pre-tribulationists, they used the very word as it was taken from the Greek text.

Those that shall be found alive will then be changed. They shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air, 1Th_4:17. At, or immediately before, this rapture into the clouds, those who are alive will undergo a mighty change, which will be equivalent to dying. This change is so mysterious that we cannot comprehend it: we know little or nothing of it, 1Co_15:51. Only, in the general, this mortal must put on immortality, and these bodies will be made fit to inherit the kingdom of God, which flesh and blood in its present state are not capable of. This change will be in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye (1Co_15:52), in the very instant, or not long after the raising up of those that sleep in Jesus. (Matthew Henry)

suddenly, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, and with force and power; by the power of Christ, and by the ministry and means of the holy angels; and to which rapture will contribute, the agility which the bodies both of the raised and changed saints will have: and this rapture of the living saints will be. (John Gill)

The godly man J.N. Darby took these seeds of thoughts before developing his dispensational system and recovering the "blessed hope" of the Church of Jesus The Messiah.

What is the Gift of Singleness?

Now concerning the things whereof ye wrote unto me: It is good for a man not to touch a woman. (1 Cor 7:1)

It is good for a man - Who is master of himself. Not to touch a women - That is, not to marry. So great and many are the advantages of a single life. (John Wesley's Commentary).

I was very encouraged to read such a simple exposition on these words by Wesley after seeing it being ignored, dismissed or belittled by many Christians. In the first chapter of the Bible, we read that it is "not good that man should be alone" and God institutes marriage. We should never speak ill of marriage and the doctrine of celibacy, as expressed in some groups, is unbiblical. Marriage is God's general design for the human race. It is not without exception and it is not mandatory for every single individual. Our marital status has nothing to do with our eternal salvation and our standing before God.

Yet in reacting to the doctrine of celibacy, Protestant and Evangelicals have tended to downplay the role and place of singleness in the Christian community. Some find it easy to dismiss this chapter as specific to the Corithian time and not as normative and therefore has no relevance for Christians today. This dismissal not only robs us of a vital New Testament teaching but also demonstrates bad exegesis. It is argued by some Christians that Paul said this only because the Corinthians were undergoing some particular time of trouble. Verse 25 is often used to support this argument:

I suppose therefore that this is good for the present distress, I say, that it is good for a man so to be.

There are various speculations as to what this "present distress" was. However I believe that Paul is referring to the trouble that is normative in the Christian experience this side of eternity. He is thinking of the same distress in Romans 8:18:

For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.

Further, Paul says just a few verses later in 1 Corinthians 7 that those who marry will have "trouble in the flesh". (verse 28). To argue that this was particular to the Corinthians in their day and not relevant to us is absurd. At this side of eternity we will have struggles in the flesh (that is, the sinful nature). Singles and married couples will each have their share of difficulties in this life, and temptation is common to all of us. Paul was single at the time he wrote these words, most likely widowed or seperated.

I would that all men were even as I myself. But every man hath his proper gift of God, one after this manner, and another after that. (verse 7).

If, as some maintain, that singleness is a "supernatural gift", then it follows that marriage is also a "supernatural gift" as everyone has a gift according to one or the other. A gift simply means a spiritual endowment or bestowal. I have heard some refer to the "gift of singleness" as the ability to be single and be free of sexual temptation. Logically, it would follow that "the gift of marriage" would be to be married and free of temptation. What an unbiblical delusion! The fact is that many single Christians do fall into sexual impurity, and many married Christians fall into sexual infidelity. There is something wrong with the typical Christian interpretation of these verses. As stated earlier, temptation will plague us all in this life as the world, the flesh and the devil are alive and well and there is no respite from the battle. If you are married at the present time, you have the gift of marriage. If you are single at the present time, you have the gift of singleness. These gifts can be exchanged over time, as some single people get married and some married people become single again (either by divorce or bereavement). No state is superior and no state is subordinate, and each has it's own benefits and troubles.

Who are the 24 elders of Revelation?

1 After this I looked , and, behold , a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said , Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter . 2 And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold , a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne. 3 And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald. 4 And round about the throne were four and twenty seats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting , clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of gold. (Revelation 4)

Who are the 24 elders in this passage? Most commentators believe that these elders are angels but in the Bible angels are never called elders. Elders are human leaders, or representative of assemblies in the Old Testament (eg. Genesis 50:7, Exodus 4:29, Numbers 11:16). The elders here are most likely human beings representing an assembly of redeemed people. John Walvoord informs us:

The elders are described as being clothed in white raiment and having on their heads crowns of gold. There are two kinds of crowns in the book of Revelation, involving two different Greek words. One is the crown of a ruler or a sovereign (Gr., diadem), which is a crown of governmental authority. The other is the crown of a victor (Gr., Stephanos), such as was awarded in the Greek games when a person won a race or some contest. This crown was usually made of leaves.

The word here is the crown of a victor rather than that of a sovereign. It was made of gold, indicating that the elders had been rewarded for victory accomplished. It is significant that the passage states the twenty-four elders already have their crowns of gold as victors. If this passage is regarded as chronologically before the time of the tribulation which succeeding chapters unfold, it would seem to eliminate the angels, as at this point they have not been judged and rewarded since their judgment seems to come later. For the same reason the elders do not seem to be a proper representation of Israel, for Israel’s judgment also seems to come at the end of the tribulation, not before. Only the church which is raptured before chapter 4 is properly complete in heaven and eligible for reward at the judgment seat of Christ. In that case, the crowns of gold on the heads of the twenty-four elders would be fitting at this point and would seem to confirm the idea that these may be representative of the church in glory. (John Walvoord, The Revelation of Jesus Christ, online at http://www.walvoord.com/page.php?page_id=262
 
This is a picture of the rapture of the church. The judgments described in Revelation 6-19 is to be fulfilled in the future, with literal judgments similar to that described in Exodus. This will occur during the seventieth seven of Daniel (a period of 7 years). In Exodus these judgments were against Egypt. In Revelation these judgments are against the whole world which has rebelled against him. These elders re-appear again in chapter 5:

8 And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints. 9 And they sung a new song, saying , Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain , and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; 10 And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.

If the King James translation is correct in rendering the pronoun in the first person plural (“we”), it further demonstrates that these are redeemed men in glory. In chapters 2 and 3 we see various churches which represent seven different ages in church history. In chapter 4 we are let into heaven to see what must take place “after these things”. That is, after the church age has run it’s course. In chapters 6-19 see God’s wrath demonstrated against the entire world for rejecting his laws and his gospel. I agree with Walvoord that these men are saints, indicating that the rapture will occur straight after the church age and before the period of tribulation to come. As the Apostle Paul told us:

Ye turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God; 10 And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come (1 Thess 1:10)

For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, 10 Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep , we should live together with him. (1 Thess 5:9-10)

Calvinism and The Double-Decree

Many “softer” Calvinists recoil in horror at that the explicit teaching or implied views of the “double-predestination” teaching. An example of this can be found in the writings of modern Calvinist R.C. Sproul, who denies (in face of the evidence) that this part and parcel of Calvinistic teaching:

The distortion of double predestination looks like this: There is a symmetry that exists between election and reprobation. God WORKS in the same way and same manner with respect to the elect and to the reprobate. That is to say, from all eternity God decreed some to election and by divine initiative works faith in their hearts and brings them actively to salvation. By the same token, from all eternity God decrees some to sin and damnation (destinare ad peccatum) and actively intervenes to work sin in their lives, bringing them to damnation by divine initiative. In the case of the elect, regeneration is the monergistic work of God. In the case of the reprobate, sin and degeneration are the monergistic work of God. Stated another way, we can establish a parallelism of foreordination and predestination by means of a positive symmetry. We can call this a positive-positive view of predestination. This is, God positively and actively intervenes in the lives of the elect to bring them to salvation. In the same way God positively and actively intervenes in the life of the reprobate to bring him to sin.

This distortion of positive-positive predestination clearly makes God the author of sin who punishes a person for doing what God monergistically and irresistibly coerces man to do. Such a view is indeed a monstrous assault on the integrity of God. This is not the Reformed view of predestination, but a gross and inexcusable caricature of the doctrine. Such a view may be identified with what is often loosely described as hyper-Calvinism and involves a radical form of supralapsarianism. Such a view of predestination has been virtually universally and monolithically rejected by Reformed thinkers. (1 Double Predestination, hosted at www.ondoctrine.com)

Sproul's admission that this view clearly makes God the author of sin is noteworthy, and Arminians rightly agree with him. Sproul rightly says that “Such a view is indeed a monstrous assault on the integrity of God” and Arminians would also agree with him on that. It is good that Sproul wants to distance himself from this view but it is dishonest to imply that non-Calvinists have simply “distorted” Reformed teaching. A.W. Pink, a “Reformed Thinker”, stated:


God had a definite reason why He created men, a specific purpose why He created this and that individual, and in view of the eternal destination of His creatures, He purposed either that this one should spend eternity in Heaven or that this one should spend eternity in the Lake of Fire. (The Sovereignty of God, Provided by Center for Reformed Theology and Apologetics www.crta.org).


Pink got this from Calvin himself:


By predestination we mean the eternal decree of God, by which he determined with himself whatever he wished to happen with regard to every man. All are not created on equal terms, but some are preordained to eternal life, others to eternal damnation; and, accordingly, as each has been created for one or other of these ends, we say that he has been predestinated to life or to death

(Institutes of Christian Religion, Book 3, Chapter 21.)


The Westminster Confession is very explicit:

By the decree of God, for the manifestation of His glory, some men and angels are predestinated unto everlasting life; and others foreordained to everlasting death.

( The Westminster Confession of Faith, Chapter 3: The Decree of God)

How clear and explicit is this and how can it be “distorted”? Is Sproul in denial or does he just have no knowledge of this? The only thing here that is "gross and inexcusible" is Sproul's scholarship. He needs to take his fellow Calvinists to task, not blame the non-Calvinists who are simply responding.

The Stranger Among You: Deut 28:43

Deuteronomy 28: 43 The stranger that is within thee shall get up above thee very high; and thou shalt come down very low. 44 He shall lend to thee, and thou shalt not lend to him: he shall be the head, and thou shalt be the tail.

This was another judgment promised to Israel for it's disobedience and rebellion against God. My country (the UK) is facing this judgment at the moment. This week we have been vexed by both Islamic extremism on the one side and far-right extremism on the other - both of which were planning to March in our capital and also other cities such as Leeds this weekend. A certain Islamist organisation had planned to stage a march yesterday demanding the implementation of Islamic rule in Britain. Thankfully, this was cancelled due to security concerns. For the moment, this historic country with a rich Christian heritage has not been handed over.

The war is raging on as "Islam for UK" intend to keep fighting for this goal. I believe my nation deserves this, as we have received a lot of light and blessing from God and we have rebelled against his laws, not only condoning iniquity but parading it publicly (public funded gay rights marches funded by the tax-payer). This is whilst our Police have no time to catch burglars as they are too busy harrassing street evangelists. Our MPs are misusing our expenses on personal pleasures and our Prime Minister refuses to comment on the Lockerbie bomber release.

I could go on, but the UK is ripe for judgment and the Church needs to wake up. The whole nation needs to repent. We have borrowed from many foreign Islamic nations and our institutions are being bought by them. This will incur a big IOU and we are becoming their tail.

Many of us prayed against the demonstrations yesterday and God has graciously answered that prayer. Maybe it is not too late yet. God delivered Israel when the nation cried out to him, and God can deliver us.