Please don't date set!

“The apostolic church thought more about the Second Coming of Jesus Christ than about death and heaven. The early Christians were looking, not for a cleft in the ground called a grave but for a cleavage in the sky called Glory.” Alexander MacLaren

 Recently, California pastor and the head of the church, Harvest Christian Fellowship, Greg Laurie, claimed in a sermon that the Hamas’ attack on Israel was predicted in the scriptures 2,500 years ago. In his sermon on October 8^th, Laurie said, “that End Times events were foreshadowed to take place around Jerusalem…if you get up in the morning and read this headline, ‘Russia Attacks Israel,’ fasten your seatbelt because you’re seeing Bible prophecy fulfilled in your lifetime before your very eyes.”

  While I appreciate that Laurie went on to say that we don’t know when Jesus will return, I believe he overstepped what the Bible tells us. No one can connect a straight line from the attack on Israel by Hamas with Old Testament prophecies. Yet, because of what is happening in Israel many well-meaning Christians are asking, “Is what is happening in Israel today the fulfillment of biblical prophecy?”  The simple and I believe biblical answer is, “No one knows.” What is true is that we must be very careful about reading current events into the Bible.

  As believers, we grieve over the horrific events of October 7^th. Like any other nation, Israel has every right to defend itself. We must remember these militant Islamic groups don’t believe Israel has a right to exist and will not be satisfied with Israel being driven from the Middle East but will only be satisfied with the extermination of every Jew on the planet. It’s impossible to negotiate with someone who wants you annihilated.

  Modern day Israel was born on May 14, 1948. At the end of World War II sympathy for the Jews increased after the Holocaust. A year prior to that, the United Nations proposed a partition of Palestine for Jews. While Jews approved the plan, Arabs opposed it.

  Once Israel declared its independence as a nation five Arab nations declared war on the fledgling country. Unbelievably Israel won and many Palestinians fled. Another war erupted in 1967, the Six Day War. Israel was outnumbered 30-1 and again won. The Yom Kipper War erupted in 1973 and Israel defeated their enemies again. There has been bloodshed in the Middle East for centuries. While we long for a peaceful solution to the Israeli-Arab conflict, no lasting peace will be achieved until Christ returns.

  God is not done with His chosen people, Israel, though something like 50% of Jews claim to be atheists. Personally, I believe that the promises God made to Israel in the Old Testament will be literally fulfilled – in God’s time when Jesus Christ returns.

  This conflict is very complicated, and one cannot also justify the often brutal treatment by Israelis of Palestinians. Yet, nothing justifies the massacre of civilians or terrorism as Hamas did recently. To equate what Hamas has done in this recent attack to Israeli brutality isn’t a moral equivalent. Yet, our love for Israel must not negate our love for Arabs and Muslims, “For God so loved the world…” The gospel is global.

  When events like these take place, some begin to read today’s news into ancient prophecy. Others date set. The Bible warns us to be cautious with prophecy and to not date set. The date-setting predictions people make have always been wrong. Throughout history, self-proclaimed prophets, well-meaning preachers, and outright charlatans have declared that a specific date was the day that Jesus would return, and then He didn’t. Those prophets had just proven they were not true prophets (Deuteronomy 18:21-22). Here are some reasons that we must not date-set.

  Date setting contradicts Jesus’ clear teaching. While the Bible does promise Christ’s return, Jesus Himself stated that no one could know the time: “But concerning that day or that hour, no one knows” (Mark 13:32). It’s hard to imagine intentionally avoiding Jesus’ words (which are also recorded in Matthew and Luke), but I surmise that a desire to sell books or gain followers is more valuable to some than truth. Anyone who proposes a date for Christ’s return is directly opposing Christ Himself. We must honor all of our Lord’s teaching, whether it pertains to the past, present or future.

  Date setting claims more knowledge than Jesus had. Whether you interpret Jesus’ words in Mark 13:32 in relation to the Rapture or in relation to His return to earth to establish His kingdom, Christ did not claim to know the date. It is both wrong and arrogant to claim to have more knowledge than Jesus.

  Date setting eradicates the imminency of Christ’s return. Once a date for Christ’s return is set and announced, the implication is that Christ could not return before that date. That contradicts the New Testament’s teaching of imminency (that Jesus could return at any moment). Rather than living ready for Christ’s return, we look for signs or events preceding His return.

  Signs are not for the Church. The Apostle Paul’s instructions were to “wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, Jesus our deliverer from the coming wrath” (1Thessalonians 1:10). Let’s not lose our focus or the joy of our blessed hope (Titus 2:13) by embracing the fallacy of date-setting. Christ’s return could happen at any moment.

  As wars take place around the world, with pandemics and other global crises, the fear of end-time catastrophes grips many hearts. It won’t be long and yet another New York Times bestseller filled with dates and frightful predictions will hit the shelves, or some TV preacher will be on the airwaves with the latest prediction. Yet before that happens, the moment could arrive. Christ could come and He could come today. His return is imminent. We are wise to remember His words and be ready: “But concerning that day or that hour, no one knows.” Let’s choose to be among those who are prepared and waiting for His return rather than trying to force God’s Word into today’s headlines.

Can we help you spiritually? Please check out more resources on our church's web page, Gracechurchwi.org. Or call us at 262.763.3021. If you'd like to know more about how Jesus can change your life, I'd love to mail you a copy of how Jesus changed my life in "My Story." E-mail me at Carson@gracechurchwi.org to request a free copy. Please include your mailing address. 

Why study "shadows"?

“God gave the prophecies, not to gratify men’s curiosity by enabling them to foreknow things, but that after they were fulfilled they might be interpreted by the event, and His own providence, not the interpreters, be thereby manifested to the world.” Sir Isaac Newton

Periodically, I’ll be in a store and see a Mom shopping with several young children and my mind will flood with a thousand memories. As a child, I remember being dragged along by my mother with my two older sisters to go shopping. I’m not sure that I’d even heard the word, but I know I felt it – B-O-R-I-N-G! Soon I’d be distracted, find something more intriguing than dresses or other feminine paraphernalia and wander off.

  Though my Mom wasn’t very tall, just a bit over five feet, I could almost always find her. Back then many women wore a hairstyle known as the beehive. I think my Mom had one that was nearly a foot high. I’d peer over racks looking for that familiar beehive. But sometimes I’d wander too far, couldn’t find her and would go into panic mode. I remember on at least one occasion having a kind store employee help me find her.

  Suppose though, that happened and in terror, I’d run to the end of an aisle. Just before full panic hits, I saw a shadow on the floor at the end of the aisle that looked like my Mom. There’d be a sense of relief and hope. Yet, which is better? The happiness of seeing the shadow, or having my Mom step around the corner and it’s really her?

  Did you know that’s what Christmas is? It’s the replacement of shadows with the real thing. In the Old Testament, God gave us shadows, lots of them. When Jesus came the shadow of prophecy was fulfilled with the coming of the Christ Child. Yet, most Christians are unfamiliar with the Old Testament. For most, it’s less than 10% of their Bible reading. If you remove Psalms and Proverbs, it might drop to less than 5%. But the Old Testament makes up 60% of our Bibles. We will never understand the New Testament and miss many of the blessings of Christ’s first coming, if we’re unfamiliar with the prophetic promises of His incarnation.

  Today we begin a new series, Christmas in the Old Testament. The Old Testament promises about Christ’s incarnation are a source of great blessing and encouragement for us. Here are a few reasons this Christmas Season we’re studying some Old Testament incarnation promises.  

  God planned for Jesus to come because of God the Father’s patient,  tenacious love. The Old Testament unfolds over thousands of years. The New Testament spans less than 100 years. In the Old Testament we encounter people much like us: sinful, stubborn, prone to blow off God and make dumb choices. And yet, we continually see a loving God who chooses to stick it out with this messed-up group of people. Reading through God’s interactions with people in the Old Testament helps us remember how amazingly steadfast God’s love is.

  The Old Testament reveals Christ. It doesn’t just “point forward” to Christ; it reveals Him. It’s not just a series of signposts to Christ; Jesus’ revealing shadow falls on virtually every page, cultivating faith and love in believing hearts. But why linger in Old Testament shadows when we have New Testament sunlight? Because there’s refreshment in the shade. Without the shadows of the Old, we’d never appreciate the sunshine of the incarnation. The dawn is beautiful, but the sunrise is absolutely stunning!

  The Bible is incomplete without the Old Testament. Both the Old and New Testaments make up the Scriptures. The New Testament wasn’t to replace the Old but to complete its story. The first book, Genesis, records how a curse came on humanity because of sin. The last, Revelation, completes the story by recording how God, through the sacrifice of Jesus, removed the curse of sin. The story of redemption is incomplete without both Testaments revealing the beginning and end of the curse.

  The Old Testament provides the historical setting out of which Christianity emerged. Christianity didn’t materialize out of a vacuum. God was moving to bring forth the Messiah who would provide pardon from the judgment that came on us because of sin. Early New Testament preachers like Stephen (Acts 7) and Paul (Acts 13:16-41) made frequent use of the Old Testament to share God’s love and plan for salvation.

  The Old Testament lays the foundation for biblical prophecy. It’s there that we find God’s covenant promises. In the Abrahamic Covenant, God promises a land, a nation, and a blessing that will extend from Israel to all the nations of the earth (Gen. 12:2-3). In the Davidic Covenant, He promises that King David will have a descendant who will sit on his throne and rule and reign forever (2 Sam. 7:12-16). The Prophets reveal how the blessing promised to Abraham and his descendants will be ultimately realized through the Lord Jesus (Jer. 31:31-34, Ezek. 36:25-28).

  Take Jesus out and the Bible makes no sense. The Old Testament gives us expectations about the promised Messiah. His birth, death, resurrection, return and Kingdom are all revealed in the Old Testament (Luke 24:44-46). If you truly want to know Jesus, you can’t disregard the Old Testament.

  The Old Testament demonstrates that God ALWAYS keeps His promises. From Genesis to Malachi, God promised again and again that He would send a Messiah, One who would save His people from their sins …and He did. Most people have a hard time trusting others. We’ve had many break their promises to us or simply lied. God always keeps His promises! As He kept His promises about Jesus’ first coming, He’ll keep all of His promises about the future. Christmas in the Old Testament reminds us that when God promises a “gift card,” we can count on cashing it in. Join us each Sunday to see anew that God always keeps His promises!

Can we help you spiritually? Can we help you know Jesus better? Please check out more resources on our church's web page, Gracechurchwi.org. Or, call us at 262.763.3021. If you'd like to know more about how Jesus can change your life, I'd love to mail you a copy of how Jesus changed my life in "My Story." E-mail me at Carson@gracechurchwi.org to request a free copy. Please include your mailing address. 

108 Years is nothing...

“It’s been said that in Chicago there are two seasons, winter and construction.  For Cubs fans, there is only one, and it always comes next year.  Rick Talley

  The curse of the goat has finally ended. It only took a little over a century. But if you’re going to endure years — no, generations — of futility and heartbreak, when you do finally win a World Series championship, it might as well be a memorable one. The Cubs finally did just that, shattering their 108-year championship drought in epic fashion: with their 8-7, 10-inning victory over the Cleveland Indians in the final game of the World Series. It went into the wee hours of the morning. In the end, at least for Cubs’ fans, it all seemed to come to an end all too soon.

  108 years…that’s a long time. But it’s a drop in the bucket compared to the fans of King Jesus. His Church has been waiting for Jesus’ return for over 2,000 years. We, too, live under the curse from a creature, a serpent who successfully tempted our first parents. With their sin they lost for all of us heaven on earth…temporarily.

  Prophecy and Jesus’ Second Coming are rarely talked about today, even in the Church. Skeptics scoff at it. That, too, was prophesied 2,000 years ago (2 Peter 3:3-4). According to the Bible, Christians have an appointment and the next date on God’s prophetic calendar is the Rapture.

  Some people think we’re crazy to believe in the Second Coming of Christ. But when Jesus ascended back to Heaven, two angels told His disciples: “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven” (Acts 1:11). I love what Dr. Adrian Rogers said, “I may be a nut, but I’m fastened to a good bolt—the Lord Jesus Christ.”

  The Bible teaches the imminent return of Jesus Christ. As believers, we’re not looking for the undertaker but the uppertaker. As Paul wrote to the church at Thessalonica, “But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep. For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.”

  Believers anticipate what’s known as the Rapture. Some point out that the English word “Rapture” doesn’t appear in the Bible. Yet, our English word “Trinity” also don’t appear in the Bible, but we adamantly believe in it.   

  Paul wrote that believers who are alive at the coming of the Lord will be “caught up.” It’s the Greek word harpazo. For many centuries the only Bible translation was the Vulgate. The Latin word is raptio, where we get the word “rapture.” The last recorded words of Jesus are on the last page of Scripture where He said, “Surely I am coming soon” (Revelation 22:20).

  We live in a time when most lack hope. Many things fuel this lack of hope: current world conditions; terrorism; government; increasing debauchery; economic anxiety; personal disappointments; health concerns; loss of loved ones; even our own approaching deaths. God’s Word urges believers to stand out as people of hope in an increasingly hopeless world.

  The bottom line of what happens after you die depends on what you do now, before you die. Some years ago, a letter went out from the Greenville County, South Carolina, Department of Social Services. It was addressed to over 50 former residents who’d recently died: “To whom it may concern: Your food stamps will be stopped effective immediately, because we have received notice that you passed away. You may reapply if there is a change in your circumstances.” But after you die, you can’t change your circumstances. What you do now as you prepare for your final appointment will determine where you will spend eternity. And there are only two options. If you know the Lord, you’ll be with Him at death but If you reject the Lord, you go to a place of eternal regret.

  In Luke 16, Jesus pulled back the curtain on the afterlife, showing us these two destinies. He told about Lazarus and a rich man. It’s a true account of two people who died. Lazarus didn’t earn heaven because he was a poor beggar. He had trusted his soul to God and was saved by faith. The rich man isn’t named, but died also. His funeral was probably a huge formal affair. But the rich man hadn’t trusted God.

  Jesus said, “The rich man also died and was buried. In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side…” Those who die rejecting Christ will regret it for all eternity. If you die in the Lord though, the moment you die on earth, the angels escort you to be with the Lord. Our loved ones who died in Christ are already there. You’ll see them and know them. Do you have someone in heaven waiting on you? Don’t disappoint them. Be sure you know Jesus.

  Scripture says there will be a generation of believers who won’t have to go through a grave to see Jesus. When Christ returns, He’ll bring born-again loved ones with Him. In a nanosecond, He’ll raise their bodies from the grave. Their souls will then occupy their eternal resurrection body. Those of us still alive will be caught up to be with the Lord. We’ll be instantly changed to be like Jesus. Believers alive when Christ returns will never have a funeral. Are you ready? Or, are you prepared for death?   

  For anyone without a relationship with Jesus, death is terrifying. Bertrand Russell, the famed atheist said of death, “The life of Man is a long march through the night, surrounded by invisible foes, tortured by weariness and pain, towards a goal that few can hope to reach and where none can tarry long. One by one, as they march, our comrades vanish from our sight, seized by the silent orders of omnipotent Death.” But what a contrast to English poet, Hannah Moore, “There is one single fact which we may oppose to all the wit and argument of atheism, namely, that no man ever repented of being a Christian on his death-bed.” Jesus is coming back! As sure as the Cubs won the Series, He’s going to return. Are you ready? 

Can we help you spiritually? Can we help you know Jesus better? Please check out more resources on our church's web page, Gracechurchwi.org. Or, call us at 262.763.3021. If you'd like to know more about how Jesus can change your life, I'd love to mail you a copy of how Jesus changed my life in "My Story." E-mail me at Carson@gracechurchwi.org to request a free copy. Please include your mailing address.