In the first part of this lesson we studied about the "everlasting gospel", what it means to "fear God and give glory to Him", and how to "worship Him". As we progress in this study let us zero in on "the hour of His judgment is come" Revelation 14:7.
Acts 17:31: "Because he hath appointed a
day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he
hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath
raised him from the dead."
Acts 24:25: "And as he reasoned of
righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come, . ."
[Further Study]
2 Thessalonians 2:1-3 "Now we beseech you,
brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together
unto him, That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit,
nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.
Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there
come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of
perdition;"
2 Peter 2:4, 9 "For if God spared not the
angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains
of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment; . . . The Lord knoweth how to deliver
the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment
to be punished:"
Jude 6 "And the angels which kept not their
first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting
chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day."
The apostles did not proclaim that "the hour of God's judgment is come". They pointed to a future time for its accomplishment.
Martin Luther (1483-1546), that great reformer of the 16th century said this, "I hope, the last day of judgment is not far, I persuade myself verily it will not be absent full three hundred years longer." Martin Luther, Familiar Discourses, pages 7-8.
Revelation 14:9-10: "And the third angel
followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his
image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, the same shall
drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into
the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone
in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb."
The third angel's message has not yet been fulfilled, for no one has yet received the mark of the beast, or experienced the wrath of God unmixed with mercy, or been tormented with fire and brimstone. Since the second and third angels' messages must be proclaimed before Jesus returns, the first must as well. If the time of judgment had not yet come during the days of the apostles or the reformers, and must take place in the last days just prior to the second coming of Christ, it must have reference to our present day.
Exodus 25:8-9, 40: "And let them make me a
sanctuary; that I may dwell among them. According to all that I shew thee, after
the pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern of all the instruments thereof,
even so shall ye make it. . . . And look that thou make them after their pattern,
which was shewed thee in the mount."
[Further Study]
Hebrews 8:5 "Who serve unto the example and
shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to
make the tabernacle: for, See, saith he, that thou make all things according to
the pattern shewed to thee in the mount."
Moses was called by God to go up into Mount Sinai to receive a detailed blueprint
(pattern) of how to build an earthly (worldly - Hebrews 9:1) sanctuary that was
portable, to be taken with them as they moved about.
Hebrews 9:1 "Then verily the first covenant
had also ordinances of divine service, and a worldly sanctuary."
Hebrews 8:1-2: "Now of the things which we
have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the
right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens; a minister of the
sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man."
Hebrews 9:24: "For Christ is not entered
into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but
into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us."
As the prophecy of Daniel 8:14 develops we will discover what the cleansing means,
and that it cannot possibly refer to the cleansing of the earthly sanctuary, but to the
heavenly. The earthly sanctuary and its services came to an end at the death of
Christ, which was symbolized by the veil of the temple being torn in half from top
to bottom (Matthew 27:51; Colossians 2:14). The old covenant or testament was
confirmed by the blood of animals, but the new "with better sacrifices than these",
the blood of Christ (Hebrews 9:23). The new covenant/testament embraces
everyone, including the Gentiles who were strangers from the old covenant made
with Israel. God's purpose for using the rituals and symbols of the Old Testament
sanctuary service is as a parable of the Gospel to focus our attention on the coming
of our Saviour and His ministry in our behalf.
Daniel 8:14 "And he said unto me, Unto two
thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed."
Matthew 27:51 "And, behold, the veil of the
temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake,
and the rocks rent;"
Colossians 2:14 "Blotting out the handwriting
of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of
the way, nailing it to his cross;"
Hebrews 9:23 "It was therefore necessary that
the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the
heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these."
Leviticus 16:16: "And he shall make an
atonement for the holy place, because of the uncleanness of the children of
Israel, and because of their transgressions in all their sins: and so shall he
do for the tabernacle of the congregation, that remaineth among them in the midst
of their uncleanness."
As this ceremony was a type or shadow of cleansing the people from sins they
committed during the year, so the judgment is a literal fulfillment of how our sins
and their record in heaven will be removed and "cleansed" from the heavenly
sanctuary. The word atonement in Leviticus 16:16, according to Strong's
Concordance, means to cleanse, to cover, pardon, disannul, be merciful. The word
judgment in Revelation 14:7 means "condemnation." However, for those who "are in
Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit," there is "now no
condemnation" (Romans 8:1). Therefore, the word atonement for God's people means to
be covered and cleansed from all sin, and judgement means that Jesus has already paid
the price. (See John 5:24; Romans 5:18)
John 5:24 "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He
that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life,
and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life."
Romans 5:18 "Therefore as by the offence of
one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of
one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life."
Daniel 8:14: "And he said unto me, Unto two
thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed."
The judgment or cleansing of the sanctuary would begin at the end of this 2300
year prophecy. Remember, one day in Bible prophecy equals one year.
Numbers 14:34 "After
the number of the days in which ye searched the land, even forty days, each day
for a year, shall ye bear your iniquities, even forty years, and ye shall know my
breach of promise."
Ezekiel 4:6 "And when
thou hast accomplished them, lie again on thy right side, and thou shalt bear the
iniquity of the house of Judah forty days: I have appointed thee each day for a
year."
Daniel 9:25: "Know therefore and understand,
that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto
the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and three score and two weeks: the
street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times."
In Ezra 6:14 it speaks of a three fold decree. Of these three decrees king
Artaxerxes was the last and most complete, restoring not only the building of
Jerusalem, but "restoring" the Jewish state in the autumn of 457 B.C. This date
can be verified by secular history.
Ezra 6:14 "And the elders of the Jews builded,
and they prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the
son of Iddo. And they builded, and finished it, according to the commandment of the
God of Israel, and according to the commandment of Cyrus, and Darius, and Artaxerxes
king of Persia."
[Further Study]
Ezra 7:8, 12-13 "And he came to Jerusalem in the
fifth month, which was in the seventh year of the king. . . . Artaxerxes, king of
kings, unto Ezra the priest, a scribe of the law of the God of heaven, perfect
peace, and at such a time. I make a decree, that all they of the people of Israel,
and of his priests and Levites, in my realm, which are minded of their own freewill
to go up to Jerusalem, go with thee."
Daniel 9:24: "Seventy weeks are determined upon
thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end
of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting
righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy."
The original Hebrew for the word "determine" means "to cut off". Seventy weeks or 70 x 7 days/years equals 490 years were to be cut off or divided from the beginning of the 2300 year prophecy. The Jewish nation had 490 years to come to repentance because of their apostasy and to prepare for the coming of the Messiah. As you read through Daniel 9 you will see other important events which are listed on the prophecy chart, all of which have been fulfilled to the letter.
Luke 21:28: "And when these things begin to come
to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh."
Romans 15:4: "For whatsoever things were written
aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the
Scriptures might have hope."
When we see with what accuracy God's word comes to pass it builds faith and
confidence in His promises, and that by believing we might have life.
2 Peter 1:4 "Whereby are given unto us exceeding
great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine
nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust."
John 20:31 "But these are written, that ye might
believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have
life through his name."
An interesting note: There was a great religious awakening during the years just prior to 1844, and when the first angel's message was being proclaimed by many Adventists (believers in the second coming of Christ) around the world. Satan brought in his counterfeit trying to cause disbelief in divine creation as the last part of Revelation 14:7 says, "Worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters". The theory that man has evolved from lower life forms over long periods of time started gaining acceptance among many people. Charles Darwin (1809-1882), began his studies in 1831 and wrote a short statement on his theory of evolution in 1842 and a longer one in "1844", finally publishing his book, The Origin of Species, in 1859.
"For eighteen centuries this work of ministration continued in the first apartment of the sanctuary. The blood of Christ, pleaded in behalf of penitent believers, secured their pardon and acceptance with the Father, yet their sins still remained upon the books of record. As in the typical service there was a work of atonement at the close of the year, so before Christ's work for the redemption of men is completed there is a work of atonement for the removal of sins from the sanctuary. This is the service which began when the 2300 days ended. At that time, as foretold by Daniel the prophet, our high priest entered the most holy, to perform the last division of His solemn work--to cleanse the sanctuary.
"As anciently the sins of the people were by faith placed upon the sin offering and
through its blood transferred, in figure, to the earthly sanctuary, so in the new covenant
the sins of the repentant are by faith placed upon Christ and transferred, in fact, to the
heavenly sanctuary. And as the typical cleansing of the earthly was accomplished by the
removal of the sins by which it had been polluted, so the actual cleansing of the heavenly
sanctuary is to be accomplished by the removal, or blotting out, of the sins which are
there recorded. But before this can be accomplished, there must be an examination of
the books of record to determine who, through repentance of sin and faith in Christ, are
entitled to the benefits of His atonement. The cleansing of the sanctuary therefore
involves a work of investigation--a work of judgment. This work must be performed prior
to the coming of Christ to redeem His people; for when He comes, His reward is with
Him to give to every man according to his works. Revelation 22:12." Christ in His
Sanctuary, pages 98-99.
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