When the disciples asked Jesus about the sign of His coming and the close of the Age (Matthew 24), He replied ,"But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only." Which seems to Gentile Christians to settle the matter. Date-setting is forbidden!
Well, sort of...
Actually, as far as the Church is concerned date-setting is impossible. However, as far as Israel is concerned it is an entirely different story - sometimes.
Not everyone will agree with what follows. There is room for debate, but this is my understanding of what all this signifies.
Date-setting is impossible for the Church because we have been set a performance target. In Romans 11:25, Paul writes of the 'fullness of the Gentiles'. We can argue about exactly what that means, but we cannot argue that it is a performance target and the fulfillment of it is known only to God the Father. Whenever and however that target is met then the Church (The Bride) will be called up to meet the Groom (Jesus) in the air.
The following passage is commanded to be used when a brother or sister in Christ dies:
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. 14 For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. 15 For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord,4 that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and rwith the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 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 vwe will always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore encourage one another with these words.
1 Thessalonians 4:13 - 18
This passage describes what is sometimes called the Rapture, or even a 'Secret' :-D Rapture! The only secret is that we don't know when it will happen!
Look at the noise!
A cry of Command. As a cadet, I was told I had a good voice of command. The Regimental Sergeant Major meant that I could be heard on the parade ground and didn't sound like a wimp.
The archangel's call. If you watch something like the 'Trooping of the Colour' or other large parades, the command is then relayed by others.
The sound of the Trumpet of God. On a really large parade or battlefield, the command is relayed by a suitable trumpet call. In this case, will it be something like reveille? (Preferably the UK version, please? ;-) )
In what way is this a secret?!
Note where the Lord meets the Bride - in the air! In other words, on Satan's turf. That's the definition of victory.
The point about the first of the Autumn feasts ( Fall US) is that it could only be proclaimed once the first sliver of the new moon had been spotted by two or three reliable witnesses. Thus no man knew the day or the hour.
Not everyone will agree with what follows. There is room for debate, but this is my understanding of what all this signifies.
Date-setting is impossible for the Church because we have been set a performance target. In Romans 11:25, Paul writes of the 'fullness of the Gentiles'. We can argue about exactly what that means, but we cannot argue that it is a performance target and the fulfillment of it is known only to God the Father. Whenever and however that target is met then the Church (The Bride) will be called up to meet the Groom (Jesus) in the air.
The following passage is commanded to be used when a brother or sister in Christ dies:
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. 14 For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. 15 For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord,4 that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and rwith the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 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 vwe will always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore encourage one another with these words.
1 Thessalonians 4:13 - 18
This passage describes what is sometimes called the Rapture, or even a 'Secret' :-D Rapture! The only secret is that we don't know when it will happen!
Look at the noise!
A cry of Command. As a cadet, I was told I had a good voice of command. The Regimental Sergeant Major meant that I could be heard on the parade ground and didn't sound like a wimp.
The archangel's call. If you watch something like the 'Trooping of the Colour' or other large parades, the command is then relayed by others.
The sound of the Trumpet of God. On a really large parade or battlefield, the command is relayed by a suitable trumpet call. In this case, will it be something like reveille? (Preferably the UK version, please? ;-) )
In what way is this a secret?!
Note where the Lord meets the Bride - in the air! In other words, on Satan's turf. That's the definition of victory.
The point about the first of the Autumn feasts ( Fall US) is that it could only be proclaimed once the first sliver of the new moon had been spotted by two or three reliable witnesses. Thus no man knew the day or the hour.
Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 15:51 - 52 that the trumpet that sounds will be the last trumpet. This is not the final trumpet to be sounded, but the last in the series of shofar blasts on Yom Teruah.
God Himself will blow the shofar as we learn from Zech. 9:14
Thus starts the Day of the LORD. This is not a one day event or even a three-week fulfillment of the Autumn Feasts.
The shofar calls an assembly, prepares for battle, announces judgement and celebrates the coronation of a king. It's the battle and the judgement that spread out the time-line.
The seventieth week of Daniel and the seven last years of Revelation are the hiatus between Yom Teruah and the rest of the feasts. This is not unusual. There has been a two thousand year hiatus between the Spring and the Autumn feasts.
There is a lot more to explain and I will do it in later posts. I will also try to show more of the links between the Tenach and the New Testament. After all, they are both Jewish collections.
Related posts on prophecy and the Feasts.
I wanted to post a full sounding of all the shofar blasts for Yom Teruah, but I have not been able to find anything properly played, accurate and suitably reverent. Can anybody help?
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