Participants: Pr. Stephen Bohr
Series Code: TTE
Program Code: TTE000002
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00:36 Shall we bow our heads for prayer?
00:39 My Father in heaven, 00:40 what a joy it is to be in Your presence 00:44 and how wonderful it is 00:45 to be able to open Your Holy Book 00:47 knowing that with certainty 00:50 we can know exactly 00:52 what is gonna take place very, very soon. 00:55 And we ask that as we study 00:57 about the Prophetic Elijah the New Testament Elijah 01:00 that Your Holy Spirit will be with us 01:02 to instruct us give us understanding. 01:06 And Lord, I ask that 01:08 as we study the New Testament Elijah 01:10 that You'll help these lessons to find lodging in our minds 01:14 because in the last two presentations 01:17 we're going to need the information 01:19 that we study today. 01:21 So give us clarity of thought 01:23 and we thank You for hearing our prayer 01:25 for we ask in the precious name 01:26 of your beloved Son Jesus, amen. 01:32 The Old Testament is really an open book. 01:39 In other words the Old Testament ends in expectancy. 01:44 The Old Testament never actually comes to an end. 01:50 I'd like to begin our study by turning in my Bible 01:54 and I invite you to turn in your's 01:56 to the Book of Malachi 01:58 the last book of the Old Testament 4:5, 6. 02:05 And you're gonna understand 02:06 what I mean when I say 02:07 that the Old Testament is not a closed book, 02:09 because the Old Testament ends in expectancy. 02:13 It's expecting somebody to come 02:16 to prepare the way for the Messiah. 02:19 It says they're in Malachi 4:5, 6 02:24 "Behold, I will send your Elijah the prophet 02:30 before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. 02:35 And he will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, 02:39 and the hearts of the children to their fathers, 02:42 lest I come and strike the earth with a curse." 02:47 Now these versus were actually written 02:50 over 300 years after Elijah was translated to heaven. 02:57 And so that we find here 300 years after Elijah 03:01 was taken to heaven that God is predicting 03:04 that a messenger will arise whose name is Elijah 03:10 and he will prepare the way for the coming of the Messiah. 03:15 In other words, we are to expect another coming of Elijah. 03:20 And that's the reason in our first study together 03:23 we dedicated so much time to study the historical Elijah. 03:27 Simply because the historical Elijah 03:29 is the foundation for understanding 03:33 the New Testament Elijah or the Prophetic Elijah 03:36 as well as the Apocalyptic Elijah 03:39 or the end time Elijah. 03:42 Now this means 03:44 that the Old Testament is actually saying 03:47 that we should expect Elijah to arise 03:51 before the coming of the Messiah. 03:54 Now today we're gonna study about the New Testament Elijah. 03:58 You see they are three Elijah's in scripture 04:00 we studied in our last lecture the Historical Elijah. 04:04 Today we're gonna study the New Testament Elijah 04:06 and in our next two topics 04:08 we're going to deal 04:09 with the Apocalyptic or the end time Elijah. 04:13 Now the question is who is the New Testament Elijah 04:17 who prepared the way for the coming of the Messiah? 04:21 Well, we have three passages in the New Testament 04:25 actually in the gospels that I would like to read 04:28 which show who the New Testament Elijah was. 04:33 The first of them is found in the Gospel of Luke 1:17. 04:40 Luke 1:17. 04:44 It says here he that is the Elijah 04:50 that is prophesied in Malachi Chapter 4. 04:53 "He will also go before Him" 04:56 that is before the Messiah 04:59 "in the spirit and power of Elijah, 05:03 'to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,' 05:06 and disobedient to the wisdom of the just, 05:09 to make ready a people prepared for the Lord. 05:13 So, you will notice in Luke 1:17 05:15 and by the way, if you look at the previous verses 05:18 you'll notice that the angel is speaking to Zacharias 05:21 the father of John the Baptist. 05:24 You'll notice here that the son of Zacharias, 05:29 John the Baptist was going to go before the Messiah 05:34 in the spirit and power of Elijah 05:37 to prepare the way for the Lord 05:40 or to prepare the way for the Messiah. 05:43 This is the first verse in the New Testament 05:45 which actually tells us 05:47 that Elijah was going to be John the Baptist. 05:53 Now there's another passage 05:54 that I would like us to take a look at 05:56 and that is Matthew 17:10-13. 06:01 Matthew 17:10-13. 06:05 Once again we find Jesus 06:08 identifying John the Baptist as the New Testament Elijah. 06:12 It says there, in Matthew 17:10 06:16 "And His disciples asked Him, saying, 06:20 'Why then do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?'" 06:26 In other words, why do the scribes say 06:27 that Elijah must come before the Messiah comes? 06:31 And now notice the words of Jesus in verse 11 06:35 "Jesus answered and said to them, 06:38 'Indeed, Elijah is coming first and will restore all things. 06:45 But I say to you that Elijah has come already, 06:51 and they did not know him 06:53 but did to him whatever they wished. 06:56 Likewise the Son of Man 06:58 is also about to suffer at their hands.'" 07:03 And then notice verse 13. 07:05 Who was Jesus talking about 07:06 when He said that Elijah had already come? 07:11 Verse 13 says "Then the disciples understood 07:17 that He spoke to them of John the Baptist." 07:22 Very clearly Jesus believe 07:25 that John the Baptist was the New Testament Elijah 07:29 not only because in the Gospel of Luke 07:32 he was announced to Zacharias 07:34 as he would prepare the way from the Messiah 07:37 but because Jesus here actually said 07:41 the John the Baptist was the New Testament Elijah. 07:45 The third passage that I would like us to notice 07:48 where Jesus identifies John the Baptist 07:51 as the New Testament Elijah is found in Matthew 11:11-14. 07:58 Matthew 11:11-14. 08:03 Here Jesus says the following. 08:06 "Assuredly, I say to you, among those born of women 08:12 there has not risen one greater than John the Baptist, 08:17 but he who is least 08:19 in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. 08:22 And from the days of John the Baptist 08:25 until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, 08:29 and the violent take it by force. 08:31 For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John." 08:37 And notice what Jesus says. 08:40 "And if you are willing to receive it, 08:43 he is Elijah who is to come." 08:48 Notice that Jesus clearly identifies John the Baptist 08:52 as Elijah in Matthew 11:14. 08:59 He also identifies John the Baptist as Elijah 09:03 in Matthew 17:10-13 and Luke Chapter 1 09:09 in speaking Zacharias identifies 09:12 John the Baptist as Elijah as well. 09:17 Now, I must make a point of clarification 09:19 and that he is that John the Baptist 09:21 was not literally Elijah. 09:24 In other words he was not Elijah in person. 09:27 You see, the Pharisees believed in that type of reincarnation 09:32 and in the Gospel of John, 09:34 you know, they ask John the Baptist are you Elijah? 09:39 And John the Baptist says no, I'm not Elijah. 09:43 So you say there's a contradiction in the Bible 09:45 because Jesus says that John the Baptist is Elijah 09:49 and John the Baptist says I'm not Elijah. 09:51 Well, there's no contradiction. 09:53 They're coming from to different angles. 09:56 You say in John Chapter 1, 09:58 John knows that those who are asking 10:01 him the question are asking 10:02 whether he is literally and personally Elijah 10:06 and he says in that sense I am not Elijah. 10:10 Jesus says that he John would come 10:14 in the spirit and power of Elijah. 10:17 In other words John the Baptist 10:19 was not Elijah reincarnated, 10:22 he was not Elijah in person 10:24 but he came with the same spirit and power of the Elijah 10:27 to perform the same kind of work 10:30 that Elijah performed in the Old Testament. 10:33 Now what was the mission of the New Testament Elijah? 10:37 If you remember in our last lecture 10:40 we noticed that Elijah the prophet 10:42 the historical Elijah was sent to an apostate Israel 10:46 to bring them back to the Lord. 10:48 He was not sent to the Palestinians 10:51 he was not sent to the Babylonians 10:52 he was not sent to the Egyptians 10:54 his mission was directly related to the people of God 10:59 they were in apostasy and the purpose 11:01 of the Old Testament Elijah was to bring 11:04 God's professed people back to the Lord. 11:08 Well, the New Testament Elijah has the same purpose. 11:12 In fact, when Jesus came to this world the Bible tells us 11:16 that the Jewish nation was in apostasy. 11:20 The problem was not idolatry at this point it was legalism. 11:23 They believe that they could work their way to heaven. 11:27 In fact, we find Jesus constantly rebuking 11:30 this self-centered spirit 11:32 the idea that you could work your way to heaven. 11:36 And so in the Old Testament the problem was idolatry 11:40 in the New Testament the problem was legalism. 11:43 But Israel was still in apostasy 11:46 when John the Baptist came to perform his mission. 11:50 Now I want to read several texts from the New Testament 11:53 which show what the mission and purpose 11:56 of the New Testament Elijah was. 11:59 And I've read some of these before 12:01 but I want to read them again 12:03 because I want to focus 12:04 on the specific purpose for his mission. 12:08 Notice once again Luke 1 12:10 and we'll also read besides verse 17 12:13 which we read before we'll read verse 16. 12:16 Luke 1:16 this is speaking about the mission 12:22 of John the Baptist. 12:23 It says here "And he will turn 12:29 many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God." 12:35 Who was he gonna turn to Lord their God? Israel. 12:39 Not the pagans, not the secular people, 12:42 not the worldly people his mission is targeted 12:46 to those who professed to serve the Lord. 12:49 Could we say Christians? 12:53 So it says and he will turn many of the children of Israel 12:56 to the Lord their God. 12:58 If they make me turning to the Lord their God 13:00 it must be that they have gone astray 13:03 from the Lord their God. 13:05 And so once again we noticed 13:07 that the mission of the New Testament Elijah 13:09 is to bring God's people who are in apostasy 13:12 back to the Lord. 13:14 I emphasize this point time and again 13:16 because when we study about the Apocalyptic Elijah 13:20 we're gonna notice that the final Elijah message 13:23 is targeted especially to the Christian world. 13:26 In the Old Testament Elijah presented his message to Israel 13:31 not to the pagan nations. 13:32 The New Testament Elijah presents his message to Israel. 13:36 And we're gonna notice at the end of time 13:38 that the end time Elijah 13:40 which is really a movement as we're gonna noticed 13:43 not one individual is going to present his message 13:46 not to literally Israel but to spiritual Israel. 13:50 Notice Luke 1:17 about the roll of this New Testament Elijah. 13:58 It says there and we've read it before 13:59 at the beginning of our study this evening. 14:02 "He will also go before him" 14:05 that is the Elijah will go before the Messiah 14:10 "in the spirit and power of Elijah." 14:14 And now notice what the purpose is. 14:16 "To turn the hearts 14:17 of the fathers to their children" 14:19 and now notice this 14:21 "and disobedient to the wisdom of the just." 14:26 Is the message of the New Testament Elijah 14:28 a message of leading people into obedience? Yes. 14:33 Obedience to what? 14:35 Obedience to God's law, 14:38 obedience to God's regulations, if you please. 14:42 And so it says 14:44 "and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just," 14:47 and then notice this "to make ready a people 14:50 prepared for the Lord." 14:52 So the purpose of this New Testament Elijah 14:56 as well as the Old Testament Elijah 14:58 is to bring God's people back to the Lord 15:01 so that when the Messiah comes 15:03 they will be ready and prepare-- 15:06 prepared to receive the Messiah. 15:09 Notice also Matthew 11:10 15:13 which we read before. 15:14 But now I want to underline one particular aspect of this. 15:18 Matthew 11:10 "For this is he of whom 15:24 it is written 'Behold, 15:26 I sent My messenger before your face, 15:31 who will'" what? 15:32 "Who will prepare Your way before Him." 15:37 In other words, He is the one 15:39 who comes before the Messiah 15:41 to prepare the way of the Messiah 15:43 so the when Messiah comes 15:45 the people will be ready to receive Him. 15:49 Now notice also Luke 3:4, 5. 15:53 I'm reading all of these versus 15:55 because the thought comes through 15:56 time and time again. 15:59 The role of Elijah is to prepare the way for the Messiah 16:03 to leads God's people away from apostasy 16:06 so that they're ready when the Messiah comes. 16:09 And in this case, it's the first coming of the Messiah 16:13 not the second coming of the Messiah. 16:15 We'll talk about the second coming of the Messiah 16:17 and the Elijah which prepares the way 16:20 in our last two lectures in this series. 16:23 Luke 3:4, 5 16:27 "As it is written in the book 16:29 of the words of Isaiah the prophet, saying, 16:33 'The voice of one crying in the wilderness, 16:36 prepare the way of the Lord, make His paths straight. 16:44 Every valley shall be filled 16:46 and every mountain and hill brought low, 16:50 the crooked places shall be made straight 16:53 and the rough ways smooth. 16:56 And all flesh shall see the salvation of God.'" 17:00 Now what kind of talk is this, 17:02 where it says make his past straight feeling valleys, 17:09 mountains being brought low, 17:11 crooked places made straight, rough ways made smooth. 17:15 What is Luke trying to tell us here? 17:18 Well, actually it's very interesting to notice 17:23 that this is really symbolism 17:25 that deals with preparing the characters of people 17:28 for the coming of the Messiah. 17:30 Allow me to read you a couple of statements 17:32 one of them is from that classic biography of Christ, 17:35 the Desire of Ages page, 135 17:38 where Ellen White is commenting about 17:41 what these expressions mean. 17:43 She says this, "Anciently, 17:47 when the King journeyed 17:48 through the less frequented parts of his dominion, 17:52 accompany of men was sent ahead of the royal chariot 17:57 to level the steep places and to fill up the hollows, 18:02 that that kid might travel in safety 18:05 and without hindrance. 18:07 This custom is employed by the prophet 18:10 to illustrate the work of the gospel." 18:14 In other words, the literal filling 18:16 in of the holes on the road 18:18 and the making low of the bumps on the road 18:21 represents the preparation of the character 18:24 to receive the Messiah. 18:26 In the book God's Amazing Grace, page 249 18:31 we find this statement which illustrates 18:34 what these expressions mean 18:36 making straight the paths 18:37 and filling in the holes and brain bringing 18:40 the mountains down or the hills down. 18:42 Notice what the author says in this devotional book, 18:45 God's Amazing Grace, page 249. 18:49 "The work of reformation here brought to view by John, 18:55 the purging of heart and mind and soul 18:59 is one that is needed by many 19:02 who today profess to have the faith of Christ." 19:06 Notice once again the idea that the message is given to those 19:09 who profess faith in Christ. 19:11 She continues saying 19:13 "Wrong practices that have been indulged in 19:19 need to be put away. 19:22 The crooked paths need to be made straight 19:25 and the rough places smooth. 19:28 The mountains and hills of self-esteem and pride 19:34 need to be brought low. 19:36 There is need of bringing forth 'fruits meet for repentance' 19:40 when this work is done 19:43 in the experience of God's believing people, 19:46 'all flesh shall see the salvation of the Lord.'" 19:50 So this work which is described in symbolic language 19:53 means hammering out a character 19:57 which will be ready for the coming of the Messiah. 20:01 Something I didn't mention last night 20:03 is actually the work of reform 20:05 of the historical Elijah had the purpose 20:08 of preparing the people for the ministry 20:10 of the prophet Elijah. 20:12 That's a whole different sermon in itself 20:14 to talk about how that work 20:17 that Elijah performed actually prepared 20:20 the way for the great work of restoration 20:23 which was made by the prophet Elijah. 20:25 In this case the preparation 20:27 by John the Baptist of smoothing 20:31 of the character so to speak 20:33 so that people would be ready 20:34 to receive the Messiah 20:36 is illustrated by the historical Elijah. 20:39 Notice also Matthew 17:11 20:43 and the role of the New Testament Elijah. 20:46 Matthew 17:11, 20:50 "Jesus answered and said to them, 20:53 'Indeed, Elijah is coming first and will'" what? 20:59 "He will restore all things." 21:03 Now let me ask you what does the word restore means? 21:06 It means bringing something totally new 21:08 that nobody knew before, right. 21:10 Of course, not, restore means to bring back. 21:15 Obviously people had gone astray 21:18 and therefore it's necessary to restore 21:21 that which people had forgotten. 21:23 In other words the purpose of John the Baptist 21:26 was to bring the attention of people to the prophecies 21:29 of the Old Testament about the Messiah, 21:31 so that when the Messiah would come 21:33 the people would be prepared to receive Him. 21:37 Notice Matthew 3:1-3 21:40 here once again it speaks about the work 21:42 of reform of the New Testament Elijah 21:46 and we're dedicated a lot of time to talk 21:48 about the mission of this New Testament Elijah 21:51 with God's people preparing people 21:54 for the first coming of the Messiah, 21:56 so that they would receive Him with open arms. 22:00 Matthew 3:1-3, 22:02 speaks about the work of this New Testament Elijah. 22:05 "In those days John the Baptist came preaching 22:09 in the wilderness of Judea, and saying 'Repent.'" 22:15 Is that the message that the Old Testament Elijah gave? 22:18 Absolutely. 22:19 "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." 22:23 Of course, the kingdom of heaven was gonna be brought by Jesus. 22:27 Verse 3, "For this is he who was spoken 22:30 of by the prophet Isaiah, saying 22:33 'The voice of one crying in the wilderness, 22:36 'Prepare the way of the Lord, make His paths straight.'" 22:42 Now do you remember in our last study 22:45 that the historical Elijah restored 22:49 the covenant sacrifice on the altar? 22:52 Now I want to notice how John the Baptist 22:56 the New Testament Elijah presented Jesus. 22:59 John 1:29, you see the Jews had a series of sacrifices 23:05 that they offered but it was just a routine. 23:07 They didn't understand 23:08 what those sacrifices represented. 23:10 They did not understand 23:12 that all of those sacrifices represented 23:14 the death of the Messiah. 23:16 And so now John the Baptist 23:18 wants to bring the attention of the people 23:20 to the true sacrifice to Jesus 23:22 to whom all of those sacrifices pointed. 23:25 John sees Jesus coming. 23:30 It says there "The next day 23:32 John saw Jesus coming toward him, 23:34 and said, 'Behold! The Lamb of God 23:38 who takes away the sin of the world!'" 23:40 So about the Old Testament Elijah 23:42 and the New Testament Elijah restore the true gospel 23:46 of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ for sin. 23:49 Both of them call an apostate people to repentance. 23:53 Both of them have the purpose of preparing of people 23:56 for the coming in the Old Testament of Elijah 23:59 and in the New Testament for the coming 24:01 of the Messiah Jesus Christ. 24:04 Now let me ask you, 24:05 did at the New Testament Elijah restore the commandments of God? 24:10 Did he actually live and die 24:14 because he was willing to take a stand 24:17 for the seventh commandment? 24:19 Absolutely. 24:20 In fact, notice Mark 6:18, Mark 6:18. 24:26 Do you know that the preaching 24:27 of the seventh commandment actually is 24:29 what led to the death of John the Baptist? 24:33 Notice what we find there Mark 6:18 24:37 "For John had said to Herod, 'It is not lawful.'" 24:43 That's an interesting word. 24:45 Did he preach the law? 24:46 He sure did. 24:47 "It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife." 24:53 And by the way that cost him his head 24:56 literally speaking not figuratively speaking. 25:00 Now John the Baptist also called the people to produce fruit. 25:04 He said repent 25:06 and repentance is shown by a change in the life. 25:09 Did the Old Testament Elijah call Israel 25:12 to have a change in their lives, 25:14 in their method of worship, 25:15 in their attitude towards the commandments, 25:18 in their attitudes toward God the Creator? 25:21 Absolutely. 25:22 The New Testament Elijah, 25:24 John the Baptist also call God's people to repent 25:28 and as a result of repentance to produce fruit. 25:31 Notice Matthew 3:8-10. 25:38 Matthew 3:8, 25:41 "Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, 25:46 and do not think to say to yourselves, 25:49 'We have Abraham as our father.' 25:52 For I say to you that God is able to raise up children 25:57 to Abraham from these stones. 26:00 And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. 26:03 Therefore every tree which does not bear 26:07 good fruit is cut down and thrown in the fire." 26:13 Did John the Baptist preach the need 26:15 to have the fruit of the spirit in the life? 26:19 Of course. 26:20 He called the people to a sanctified to a holy life 26:24 just like the Old Testament Elijah did. 26:27 In fact, in John 15:8 26:31 we find Jesus saying some very interesting words. 26:34 John 15:8 "By this My Father is glorified, 26:40 that you bear" what? 26:42 "Much fruit, so you will be My disciples." 26:47 And so both the Old Testament Elijah 26:50 and the New Testament Elijah, John the Baptist call the people 26:53 to live a holy life to prepare a character 26:57 to receive the Messiah when He should come. 27:01 Now you remember that in the Old Testament Elijah 27:04 he preach a message of judgment. 27:06 When His message was joined by the fire from heaven 27:10 we find that there were only two groups, 27:13 there were the saved and lost. 27:16 Those who worship the true God 27:18 and those who chose to worship Baal. 27:21 Let me ask you. 27:22 Did John the Baptist preach a message of judgment 27:26 that there was going to be a separation 27:28 between the righteous and the unrighteous? 27:31 Absolutely. 27:32 Notice Matthew 3 and we'll read verse 10 27:37 and then we'll jump down to verse 12. 27:40 Matthew 3:10 and we also read verse 12. 27:44 And once again I want to remind you that 27:47 here he is speaking to those 27:48 who profess to serve the Lord. 27:50 He's not speaking to the Philistines, 27:51 he's not speaking to the Egyptians, 27:53 to the Babylonians or to any of those secular worldly people. 27:57 He is speaking of a separation 28:00 to take place among those 28:02 who profess to serve God. 28:04 Christians if you please. 28:06 It says in verse 10 28:08 "And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. 28:13 Therefore every tree which does not bear 28:17 good fruit is to cut down and thrown into the fire." 28:23 Let me ask you does a sanctified life 28:25 have anything to do with our standing of the judgment? 28:28 It most certainly does. 28:30 Some people say we're not saved by good works. 28:33 That's true but we won't be saved without good works either. 28:36 Because good works are an indication of true 28:40 and genuine faith, a true of acceptance of Jesus 28:43 and true repentance. 28:45 If there is true repentance 28:47 there will be fruit in life, the life will be different, 28:50 the life will be sanctified, the life will be holy. 28:54 Now notice what we find verse 12. 28:56 It says "His winnowing" this is speaking about the Messiah. 28:59 "His winnowing fan is in His hand." 29:02 Do you know what winnowing fan was? 29:04 Actually what they did is they would rub the grain 29:08 and then the covering of the grain would, 29:10 would fall off and then they would throw it up into the air 29:13 and somebody with a great big fan would blow it 29:16 and then all of the chap would blow away 29:18 and a grain of wheat would fall to the ground 29:20 that's a winnowing fan. 29:21 And so it say "His winnowing fan is in His hand, 29:25 and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, 29:30 and gather His wheat into the barn" see, 29:33 there you have the righteous 29:34 "will gather His wheat into the barn, 29:37 but He will burn up" the what? 29:39 "The chaff with unquenchable fire." 29:41 Did John the Baptist preach a message of separation 29:43 and judgment based on your acceptance 29:47 or rejection of the Messiah? 29:49 Absolutely. 29:51 Now we come to a very important juncture in our study. 29:56 Do you know that Elijah never appears in prophecy by himself? 30:02 Whenever Elijah appears 30:05 his three enemies appear with him. 30:09 This is where the study's gonna become 30:11 very, very interesting, you see. 30:12 People did not love the Old Testament Elijah. 30:16 See, he ended up in the wilderness. 30:19 People did not love the New Testament Elijah either. 30:23 He ended up where? 30:25 He ended up in dungeon, he ended up in prison 30:29 because his message was so direct, and so strong. 30:34 No political correctness, no beating around the bush, 30:37 just like the Old Testament Elijah 30:38 came in and said, 30:39 you are the man I have not trouble Israel. 30:43 The New Testament Elijah just as pointedly 30:45 said to the king it is not lawful for you 30:48 to have your brother's wife. 30:50 In other words both Elijah's preach a direct point of message 30:54 and when they do this there three enemies surface. 30:59 Now let's study about those three enemies 31:02 because whenever Elijah appears his three enemies appear, 31:05 which means that the New Testimony Elijah 31:08 must have three enemies like the Old Testament Elijah. 31:12 What were the enemies in the Old Testament? 31:15 Ahab the king, Jezebel harlot queen 31:20 and the prophets of Baal 31:22 they did the biddings of Jezebel 31:25 because they ate at Jezebel stable 31:27 according to what we studied in our last lecture. 31:30 Now go with me to Mark Chapter 6 31:33 and let's begin reading at verse 14. 31:37 At this time John the Baptist 31:39 the New Testament Elijah is in prison. 31:43 I want to notice how the story develops 31:45 the story of his martyrdom. 31:48 It says there in Mark 6:14. 31:52 "Now King Herod heard of Him" that of his Jesus. 31:56 "For His name had become well known. 31:59 And he said, 'John the Baptist is risen from the dead, 32:04 and therefore these powers are at work in him.'" 32:07 So he thought that Jesus was Elijah 32:09 or John the Baptist resurrected from the dead. 32:12 Verse 15 "Others said, 'It is Elijah.' 32:16 And others said, 'It is the Prophet, 32:19 or like one of the prophets.' 32:21 But when Herod heard, 32:23 he said, 'This is John, whom I beheaded, 32:27 he has been raised from the dead!'" 32:30 Let's go to verse 17. 32:33 Notice verse 17, why was John the Baptist in prison. 32:40 It says in verse 17 32:41 "For Herod" Herod was the king, right? 32:45 "He himself had sent and laid hold of John." 32:50 Who was the one who laid of John. 32:53 Herod the king. Why did he do it? 32:55 I guess he hated 32:56 the John the Baptist the king did right. 32:57 No. 32:59 It says "For Herod himself had sent and laid hold of John, 33:04 and bound him in prison for the sake of Herodias, 33:11 his brother Philip's wife, for he had married her." 33:17 Who was that wanted John the Baptist in prison? 33:20 Was that, was that the king, king Herod? 33:23 No. 33:24 Who was it? It was Herodias. 33:27 Let me ask you 33:28 was Herodias according to the biblical definition 33:32 on adulterous woman? 33:34 Yes, she was. 33:36 Is she just like Jezebel in the Old Testament? 33:38 She most certainly is. 33:40 Is Ahab very similar to King Herod? 33:45 Yes, both of them are wimps. 33:48 When you read the stories 33:49 that have a very similar character. 33:52 And Jezebel and Herodias 33:54 both have very similar characters. 33:57 And so you have this Old Testament Elijah 34:00 who has a king, for an enemy, 34:03 a Harlot queen for enemy 34:05 and the apostate prophets of Baal 34:08 who do the biddings of Jezebel. 34:10 And the New Testament Elijah has as an enemy Herod 34:15 and Herod's wife Herodias 34:18 and then one other instrument 34:19 that we're gonna study as we go along. 34:22 Now notice Mark 6:18 34:25 what is that Herodias hated about John the Baptist? 34:29 Why did she have him thrown into prison by the king? 34:34 Oh, it says there in Mark 6:18, 34:37 "For john had said to Herod, 34:42 'It is not lawful for you 34:46 to have your brother's wife.'" 34:51 Did John the Baptist rebuke this adulterous relationship 34:56 between the king and Herodias? 34:58 Yes. 35:00 Did Elijah in the Old Testament rebuke 35:03 this relationship between King Ahab and Jezebel? 35:07 He most certainly did. 35:08 Did that get them into trouble in the Old Testament? 35:10 Yes. 35:12 Did the John the Baptist 35:13 get into trouble in the New Testament? 35:15 He most certainly did and he got into trouble 35:17 because he was preaching 35:18 the seventh commandment of God's holy law. 35:22 Now I want you to notice verse 19, 35:24 the plot gets very interesting here, verse 19. 35:28 It says, "Therefore," because of what he preached, 35:33 "Therefore Herodias held it against him" 35:39 and now notice this, "and wanted to kill him," 35:43 was she a murder as woman? 35:46 Was Jezebel murder this woman 35:48 who wanted the death of Elijah? 35:50 Oh, yes. 35:51 "Therefore Herodias held it against him, 35:53 and wanted" to what? 35:56 "To kill him but she could not." 36:01 Was there something that restrained her 36:04 from killing God's prophet? 36:05 Yes. 36:06 According to this, there was some restraint, 36:09 could we even say 36:10 that perhaps she had a deadly wound 36:13 that did not allow her to kill the prophet 36:17 even though she wanted to kill God's prophet? 36:21 And so she held it against him and wanted to kill him 36:24 but there was something that was holding her back 36:28 from killing God's prophet. 36:30 Now let's notice Chapter 6:20, Mark 6:20. 36:36 Let me ask you was the king 36:38 by himself a menace to John the Baptist? 36:41 No. 36:42 Was Ahab a menace to Elijah in the Old Testament? 36:47 Was he the dangerous figure? 36:48 Was the king the dangerous figure? 36:50 Absolutely not. 36:51 In the New Testament the king is not the dangerous figure. 36:54 Who was he dangerous figure in the New Testament story? 36:57 It's Herodias. 36:59 Who was the dangerous figure in the Old Testament story? 37:02 Jezebel. 37:04 In both cases they are harlot queens 37:08 who are committing adultery. 37:11 So, it says in verse 20 37:12 "For Herod feared John, 37:15 knowing that he was a just 37:17 and holy man, and protected him." 37:21 Notice the problem was the king? 37:24 The problem is when the king joined the harlot 37:26 and when the daughter helped the mother. 37:28 We will come to that in a few moments. 37:30 It says "And when he heard him, 37:33 he did many things and heard him" what? 37:36 "Heard him gladly." 37:39 No, there's no problems with the king, 37:42 the civil power was the problem? 37:44 The problem was the harlot mother. 37:47 Now let's go 37:52 it says "Then an opportune day came." 37:56 Let me ask you opportune for whom? 37:59 Opportune for the mother. 38:02 In other words for Herodias. 38:05 "Then an opportune they came 38:07 when Herod on his birthday 38:11 gave a feast for his nobles, 38:14 the high officers, and the chief men of Galilee." 38:20 Let me ask you what do you supposed 38:21 they were drinking at that party? 38:24 Water right, H20. Nice try. 38:29 In the Book Temperance, pages 50 and 51 38:33 only an individual was drunk 38:35 would've offered half of the kingdom for a dance. 38:39 Notice the Book Temperance, pages 50 and 51 38:43 "The false enchantment of the dizzy scene 38:48 seemed to take away reason 38:51 and dignity from Herod and his guests, 38:54 who were flushed with wine. 38:58 The music and wine and dancing 39:02 had removed the fear and reverence of God from them. 39:08 Nothing seemed sacred to Herod's perverted senses." 39:15 What was Herod drinking? He was drinking wine. 39:21 By the way, do you know that the Old Testament story 39:22 I didn't mention this last time. 39:24 The Old Testament story also involves wine. 39:28 You remember that King Ahab wanted Naboth's vineyard 39:33 because it produced wine. 39:34 I won't get into that now 39:36 but there's a wine involved in both stories. 39:40 And so here under the influence of wine 39:42 he was not able to think clearly 39:46 about what he was offering and what he was doing. 39:49 Do you know that the influence of wine 39:52 blurs the ability to distinguish 39:54 between the holy and the common? 39:56 We have the story of Nadab and Abihu 39:58 in the Old Testament, tragic story. 40:02 The Bible says that they took strange fire before the Lord, 40:06 they put it with the incense. 40:08 God had said take the fire from the altar 40:10 that's holy fire, they took common fire 40:12 and they offered it to God as if it were holy. 40:17 And the Bible say a little bit 40:19 later on in the story in Leviticus 10 40:21 that the reason why they were not able 40:22 to distinguish common fire from holy fire 40:25 is because they had been drinking wine. 40:30 You have the same story in Daniel Chapter 5 40:33 where Belshazzar is having this banquet 40:35 the night that Babylon fell. 40:37 And the Bible says that under the effect of the wine, 40:41 he call for the holy vessels to be brought from the temple 40:44 of Jerusalem the holy vessels 40:47 and he used God's holy vessels 40:49 to put the common wine in 40:52 and to have people drink from them 40:54 and that lead to the fall of Babylon 40:57 as the drinking of wine by Nadab and Abihu lead to their deaths. 41:03 In other words, we have wine here. 41:05 By the way I'll get ahead of myself a little bit, 41:08 does the Book of Revelation 41:09 speak about the whole world being drunk 41:11 with the wine of the Harlot Babylon 41:14 in the end time? Absolutely. 41:16 I just want to give you an inkling of what's coming 41:19 because both of these stories, 41:21 both of these Elijah's prefigure an end time Elijah. 41:25 All of the details callous from the toast Elijah's 41:29 when you put them together 41:30 all of the details come together in one great final Elijah 41:34 which is not a single person but actually a movement. 41:39 So here you have the mother 41:40 who wants to kill the New Testament Elijah 41:42 but there's something that keeps her from doing it. 41:45 She has no power or influence over the king 41:48 at that point she needs somebody to help her 41:51 like the prophets of Baal help Jezebel 41:53 seek out Elijah to kill him. 41:55 And now the daughter comes in to the story. 41:59 Notice Mark 6:22 42:04 "And when Herodias' daughter 42:08 herself came in and danced, 42:14 and pleased Herod and those who sat with him, 42:18 the king said to the girl, 42:21 'Ask me whatever you want, 42:24 and I will give it to you.'" 42:29 So now we have the third enemy 42:31 of the New Testament Elijah coming into focus. 42:35 By the way, do you notice the terminology 42:37 that we have here? 42:39 Herod is called in this passage king. 42:46 In this passage Herodias is called mother. 42:52 And in this passage Salome is called daughter. 42:58 This will be picked up in Revelations Chapter 17, 43:01 where you have the mother off Harlot's, 43:05 she has daughters and she fornicates 43:07 with the king's of the earth. 43:10 You have a triple alliance 43:12 in the Book of Revelation as well. 43:14 And they bear a resemblance in their relationships 43:18 to the figures that we have 43:19 in the story of the New Testament Elijah 43:21 and the story of the Old Testament Elijah. 43:24 So Herodias can do nothing. 43:26 She needs the help of whom? 43:28 Of her daughter her image and likeness. 43:32 Notice verse 23. 43:34 By the way, who is the manipulator 43:36 and the orchestrator that stands behind the scenes here? 43:41 Who is the dangerous figure? 43:44 The king? No. 43:45 The daughter? 43:47 No, the daughter does never mind of her own. 43:49 Like mother like daughter, right? 43:51 She does just like her mother. 43:52 She's an the image and likeness of her mother, 43:55 if you please. Notice verse 23. 44:00 "He also slower to swore to her, 44:03 'Whatever you ask me, I will give you, 44:07 up to half my kingdom.'" 44:11 And now the story really gets thick. 44:15 Verse 24, So she went out 44:19 and said to her mother, 44:23 this is so significant. 44:25 When we get the Book of Revelation 44:27 we'll understand the full breath and significance of this story 44:31 because this is the foreshadowing 44:33 of a global worldwide system at the end of time 44:37 which is spoken of as the dragon, 44:39 the beast and the false prophet. 44:41 The kings, the mother and her daughters 44:44 and they bear the same relationship as in this story. 44:48 And so we find here in verse 24, 44:52 "So she went out and said to her mother, 44:55 'What shall I ask?'" 44:58 Does the daughter have mind of her own? 45:01 No. 45:03 Her mother is the one who dictates. 45:05 Does her mother want to use the king to kill John? Yes. 45:09 Can she do it directly with the king? No. 45:11 So she has to use her daughter in order to be able 45:14 to use the king to kill the New Testament Elijah. 45:18 So she went out and said to her mother 45:20 what shall I ask? 45:23 And she said the head of John the Baptist. 45:32 That's amazing. 45:34 You know, you would think that the daughter would say mother, 45:38 you've got to be crazy. 45:41 Did she say that? No. 45:43 What she just like your mother? 45:45 She was an image and reflection of her mother. 45:48 Notice verse 25. 45:51 "Immediately" did she think about it? No. 45:56 What her mother said, that was it. 45:58 "Immediately she came in 46:03 with haste to the king 46:07 and asked, saying, 46:09 "I want you to give me at once 46:13 the head of John the Baptist on a platter." 46:17 Is she just like her mother? 46:19 Yes, she is. 46:21 Is she the one who is devising this plan? No. 46:24 She's doing with her mother wants. 46:27 Is this the same story 46:28 that we find in the Old Testament? Identical. 46:33 Now notice verse 26 46:35 how the civil power reacts 46:37 does the king now know there's been had? 46:41 Yes, but it's too late. 46:44 Isn't right, it's too late. 46:46 The superpower awakens, the king awakens 46:48 he said it's terrible of what I have done. 46:52 Verse 26 "And the king was exceedingly sorry, 46:58 yet, because of the oaths 47:00 and because of those who sat with him, 47:03 he did not want to refuse her." 47:07 Interesting. 47:09 The political power has given a decree 47:13 and the decree cannot be what? 47:16 The decree cannot be changed. 47:19 Does that ring a bell? 47:22 Now let's notice, how the story reaches its climax. 47:27 Mark 6:27, 28 it says, 47:31 "Immediately the king sent an executioner 47:38 and commanded his head to be brought. 47:42 And he went and beheaded him in prison." 47:47 And now comes very significant verse. 47:50 "Brought his head on a platter, 47:54 and gave it to the girl, 47:57 and the girl gave it to her mother." 48:06 Are you getting the picture here? 48:09 Is this a threefold alliance? 48:12 It most certainly is. 48:13 Is the king the dangerous figure? No. 48:16 Is the daughter by herself the dangerous figure? No. 48:19 It's the mother. 48:21 The mother can't do everything 48:23 unless she uses her daughter to influence the king. 48:29 Now let's go back Malachi 4:5, 6. 48:34 Is John the Baptist the last Elijah of scripture? 48:38 No. 48:40 Because the scripture tells us that the end time Elijah 48:43 would arise before the great and terrible day of the Lord. 48:47 And the first coming was not the great 48:49 and terrible day of the Lord, 48:51 the day that's coming burn like oven 48:53 it says in Malachi 4:1. 48:55 So John the Baptist must have been 48:57 a partial fulfillment of the Elijah Prophecy 49:01 not the fulfillment of the Elijah Prophecy. 49:04 Do you know that there are many prophecies 49:05 of the Old Testament that received 49:07 partial fulfillments with the first coming? 49:11 For example Joel Chapter 2 49:12 "I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh. 49:15 There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars." 49:17 There is no evidence that on the day of Pentecost 49:19 they are were signs in the sun, moon and stars 49:21 and yet that prophecy was partially fulfilled 49:24 on the day of Pentecost according to Peter. 49:27 So you have prophecies in the Old Testament 49:29 that are partially fulfilled. 49:31 Another one is the Book of Haggai, chapter 2, 49:34 where it says that, 49:35 that the desire of nations of all nations 49:37 would come to the temple. 49:39 And that God was gonna shake the havens 49:41 and the earth when it came to the temple. 49:43 Well, the fact is that when Jesus wasn't incarnate 49:47 the heavens on the earth didn't shake, 49:49 so we have to expect a second coming of Messiah. 49:51 In other words, these Old Testament prophecies 49:54 have a dual fulfillment. 49:56 They are fulfilled partially at the first coming 49:58 and they will be fully fulfilled 50:00 in connection with the second coming of Jesus. 50:02 Notice Malachi 4: 5, 6 50:04 "Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet 50:08 before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord." 50:13 Are we to expect that end time Elijah 50:15 before the great and dreadful day of Lord? 50:17 Yes, because Malachi 4:1-3 says 50:20 that dreadful day of the Lord is the day 50:22 that burns like an oven when the wicked will be stubble. 50:26 There will not neither be left root no brash 50:29 that is the dreadful and terrible day of Lord. 50:31 God is gonna send Elijah before that day. 50:35 He continues saying in verse 6 50:37 "And he will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, 50:39 and the hearts of the children to their fathers. 50:42 Lest I come and strike the earth with a curse." 50:47 I found an interesting statement 50:49 which was written by James White, 50:51 the title of the article is Elijah the Prophet. 50:55 This quotation is found in the Adventist review 50:57 in Sabbath Herald April 5, 1870. 51:01 He says this "The first and second advents" 51:06 or comings "are in many respects parallel events." 51:11 Single prophecies often contemplate them both" 51:15 in other word single prophecies contemplate both comings. 51:19 "The prophetic utterances glancing 51:21 from one to the other in quick transition. 51:25 Such prophecies receive a partial fulfillment 51:29 in the events of the first advent, 51:32 and a complete accomplishment 51:34 in events connected with the second. 51:37 Of such a nature 51:39 we believe are some of the predictions of Malachi." 51:44 So basically he's taking this principle 51:47 that some prophecies of the Old Testament 51:49 are fulfilled partially with the first coming 51:51 of the Messiah and are fully fulfilled 51:54 in connection with the second coming of the Messiah. 51:58 Ellen White in the Desire of Ages, 52:00 page 101 concurs with this idea when she says the following. 52:06 "In preparing the way for Christ's first Advent, 52:12 he that is John the Baptist was a representative 52:16 of those who are to prepare up people 52:20 for our are Lord's second coming." 52:23 In other words, John the Baptist 52:24 becomes a type of God's end time people 52:30 who will proclaim a message 52:31 to the Christian world like Elijah did 52:34 and like John the Baptist did. 52:36 But there's a very important principle 52:38 that we need to understand 52:40 as we transition into our study 52:42 of the last day Elijah and that principle is this. 52:48 In the Old Testament 52:50 and in the days of John the Baptist 52:53 you are dealing with literal Israel. 52:58 And you are dealing with a literal person 53:02 on a literal stage, on the local stage, 53:06 literal Jerusalem and Judea. 53:10 In other words because the Old Testament Elijah 53:12 and because John the Baptist are dealing with literal Israel 53:17 you have a literal person 53:19 speaking in a limited geographical location. 53:24 The end time Elijah is different 53:27 because with the end time Elijah 53:29 you are not dealing with literal Israel 53:32 you are dealing with what? 53:35 Spiritual Israel. 53:37 Let me ask you where is spiritual Israel located today? 53:42 Spiritual Israel is all over the world. 53:45 Spiritual Israel is composed of those 53:48 who have received Jesus Christ as Lord. 53:51 We find for example in Galatians 3:29 53:54 it says "If you are Christ when you are Abraham seed, 54:01 and heirs according to the promise." 54:04 So in other words, Israel today is not in the Middle East 54:07 according to the New Testament definition Israel is worldwide 54:12 because Israel is composed of those 54:15 who have received Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. 54:20 Which means that if Israel is worldwide then the messenger 54:26 who is going to bring the Elijah message 54:28 at the end of time must be a movement of people 54:33 who proclaimed the same message that Elijah preached 54:37 because one individual is not gonna preach 54:39 the gospel to the whole world. 54:42 The three angel's messages will find in Revelation 14, 54:45 are the final Elijah message 54:47 that go to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people. 54:51 It takes a movement, 54:53 it takes a Remnant Church 54:55 to proclaim this message to the world. 54:57 So in the Old Testament 54:59 and with the New Testament Elijah 55:01 you're dealing with literal Israel, 55:03 you're dealing with the literal person 55:05 who brings the message 55:07 and the event is taking place on a local stage. 55:12 In the end time you have spiritual Israel 55:15 and the message will be imparted 55:17 by a movement on a worldwide or global scale. 55:22 Do you understand this principle 55:25 it's vital for comprehending 55:27 how Elijah is gonna fulfill his mission in the end time. 55:31 We're not talking about one individual 55:33 we're talking about a movement. 55:36 But let me ask you the end time Elijah. 55:38 He's gonna bring his message primarily to the un-churched. 55:43 He's gonna bring his message 55:45 to the Hindus and the Buddhists and all of those people 55:49 who don't profess Christianity. 55:53 You think that the end time Elijah 55:55 is primarily coming to bring 55:58 his message to the secular world? 56:00 No. 56:02 He's going to bring his message to whom? 56:05 To Christendom. 56:07 In other words, Christendom 56:09 that has apostatized from the Lord 56:11 and needs to be brought back to the Lord 56:14 so they might be ready for the second coming of Jesus. 56:18 So the Elijah message is targeted primarily Christians. 56:22 Some people say you're Adventist, 56:24 you're sheep stealers. 56:26 Because all you do is preach to other Christians 56:28 in your evangelistic meetings. 56:30 Well, the fact is, that Elijah was sent to Israel, 56:33 John the Baptist was sent to Israel, 56:36 the end time Elijah is sent Christendom 56:38 which has forgotten the true God 56:41 that needs to be that brought back to the true God. 56:45 Our Christendom which has mixed or blended 56:50 worship to the Lord and worship to paganism, 56:54 you say how is that? 56:55 We'll study this but let me give you an inkling 56:57 of what I am talking about. 56:59 The Christian world claims to serve the true God 57:02 but they keep the day of sun 57:03 which is a pagan day of worship. 57:07 Bear was the sun God 57:09 and yet they claimed to serve the true God. 57:11 The end time Elijah will call the Christian world 57:14 back to the routs, back to the truth, 57:17 back to the worship of the true Creator on the day 57:21 which He has established as a day of worship. 57:24 Don't miss the next exciting episode. |
Revised 2014-12-17