Weekly Bible Study – June 1, 2015

The Prophecy of Daniel 9.
The mystery behind the sealing up of vision and prophecy.

PLEASE READ FIRST

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Prepare yourself for learning the Word of God!

Before we begin, if you are a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ (that is; you have believed [trusted] in Him for His promised gift of eternal life), it is important to prepare yourself to learn God's Word so take a moment to name, cite or acknowledge (confess) your sins privately to God (i.e.; with your thoughts directed only to God the Father).

1 John 1:9 says: "If we confess our sins, He (God) is faithful and just to forgive us our sins (known sins) and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness [unknown or forgotten sins]." NKJV (New King James Version) [italics added]

If you have never personally believed in the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior (that is, believed in Him for eternal life), the issue for you is not to name your sins; the issue for you is to have faith alone in Jesus Christ alone for eternal life:

John 6:47 says: "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me (Jesus Christ) has everlasting life." NKJV [italics added]

Notice again what Jesus said in John 6:47: "…he who believes in Me (Jesus Christ) has everlasting life." It doesn't say, "will have"; it says, "has." Therefore, the very moment you believe in Jesus Christ for His promise of everlasting life, you have it (it's really just that simple; nothing more and nothing less), and it can never be taken away from you (John 10:28-29). Furthermore, the gift (Ephesians 2:8c) of everlasting life (also called eternal life in scripture) is available to every human being; there are absolutely no exceptions.

John 3:14-18 says: "¹⁴ And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, ¹⁵ that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. ¹⁶ For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. ¹⁷ For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. ¹⁸ He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God." NKJV

Let us now bow our hearts and take a moment to prepare for worship and learning God's Word. If there is any known sin in your life, this is the time to just cite it privately to God the Father with your thoughts directed towards Him. With your head bowed and your eyes closed, you have total privacy in your mind and soul:

Study to show yourself approved to God!

Grace Bible Church
Robert R. McLaughlin Bible Ministries

The Tree of Life is a weekly teaching summary:
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STUDY TITLE:

The Prophecy of Daniel 9.
The mystery behind the sealing up of vision and prophecy.



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Terms & Abbreviations used:

PPOG = Predesigned Plan of God
Human Good = Evil + Good Deeds while not in fellowship with God
OSN = Old Sin Nature
TLJC = The Lord Jesus Christ
SSE = Spiritual Self Esteem
PVTD = Positive Volition Towards Doctrine
+H - The Happiness of God
NVTD = Negative Volition Towards Doctrine
Doctrine = Bible Truth

To look up other “terms”, go to:

Alphabetical Listing

BEGIN BIBLE STUDY
Unless otherwise noted, all scripture quotes and references
are from the NASB – New American Standard Bible

The Prophecy of Daniel 9.
The mystery behind the sealing up of vision and prophecy.

We are noting the six different manifestations of the prophecies given in DAN 9:24 that our Lord either already fulfilled or will fulfill in the future. In DAN 9:24 there are six different prophecies mentioned that our Lord fulfilled or will fulfill, three of them He has already fulfilled which are the following: DAN 9:24, “Seventy weeks [or 490 years] have been decreed for your people and your holy city. Here’s the three prophecies that have already been fulfilled:

1) To finish the transgression.
2) To make an end of sin.
3 To make atonement for iniquity.

All three of these we have already seen. The next three prophecies are prophecies we are waiting for our Lord to fulfill and are found in the remainder of DAN 9:24:

4) To bring in everlasting righteousness which means to bring in the Millennial reign or the 1,000 year period of the kingdom of righteousness. And we have now spent enough time on that kingdom of righteousness that our Lord will fulfill.

5) The next prophecy is given by the phrase to seal up vision and prophecy. This is the fifth prophecy that Daniel mentions. To one degree or another, one of the goals of the 70 week period is “to seal up the vision and prophecies” given to man by God.”

The two questions that need to be answered are: a. Who will fulfill the prophecy? b. What does the phrase “to seal up visions and prophecy” mean? The answer to the first question is of course our Lord will fulfill the prophecy when He comes back the Second time.

The second question that needs to be answered is what the writer means by the verb “to seal up.” It is the Hebrew verb chatham meaning to close up; especially to seal, to complete, to make an end or a mark or to stop. Because we have not reached the end of the 70th week yet, the 490 years which is waiting for the last seven to be fulfilled and will during the Tribulation period, this prophecy remains partially, but not fully fulfilled. Partially because most of the prophecies have been fulfilled, but there are still some that are a mystery as far as when and how they will be fulfilled.

This part of Daniel’s prophecy seems to have several levels of fulfillment - It has a Short term, long term, and everlasting term. For example, in chapter 8 Daniel records this for us:

DAN 8:1-14, In the third year of the reign of Belshazzar the king a vision appeared to me, Daniel, subsequent to the one which appeared to me previously. And I looked in the vision, and it came about while I was looking, that I was in the citadel of Susa, which is in the province of Elam; and I looked in the vision, and I myself was beside the Ulai Canal. Then I lifted my gaze and looked, and behold, a ram which had two horns was standing in front of the canal. Now the two horns were long, but one was longer than the other, with the longer one coming up last. I saw the ram butting westward, northward, and southward, and no other beasts could stand before him, nor was there anyone to rescue from his power; but he did as he pleased and magnified himself. While I was observing, behold, a male goat was coming from the west over the surface of the whole earth without touching the ground; and the goat had a conspicuous horn between his eyes. And he came up to the ram that had the two horns, which I had seen standing in front of the canal, and rushed at him in his mighty wrath. And I saw him come beside the ram, and he was enraged at him; and he struck the ram and shattered his two horns, and the ram had no strength to withstand him. So he hurled him to the ground and trampled on him, and there was none to rescue the ram from his power. Then the male goat magnified himself exceedingly. But as soon as he was mighty, the large horn was broken; and in its place there came up four conspicuous horns toward the four winds of heaven. And out of one of them came forth a rather small horn which grew exceedingly great toward the south, toward the east, and toward the Beautiful Land. And it grew up to the host of heaven and caused some of the host and some of the stars to fall to the earth, and it trampled them down. It even magnified itself to be equal with the Commander of the host; and it removed the regular sacrifice from Him, and the place of His sanctuary was thrown down. And on account of transgression the host will be given over to the horn along with the regular sacrifice; and it will fling truth to the ground and perform its will and prosper. Then I heard a holy one speaking, and another holy one said to that particular one who was speaking, “How long will the vision about the regular sacrifice apply, while the transgression causes horror, so as to allow both the holy place and the host to be trampled?” And he said to me, “For 2,300 evenings and mornings; then the holy place will be properly restored.”

Notice DAN 8:15 says, And it came about when I, Daniel, had seen the vision, that I sought to understand it; and behold, standing before me was one who looked like a man. He looked like a man but he was an angel.

Now in DAN 8:16-26, And I heard the voice of a man between the banks of Ulai, and he called out and said, “Gabriel, give this man an understanding of the vision.” So he came near to where I was standing, and when he came I was frightened and fell on my face; but he said to me, “Son of man, understand that the vision pertains to the time of the end.” Now while he was talking with me, I sank into a deep sleep with my face to the ground; but he touched me and made me stand upright. And he said, “Behold, I am going to let you know what will occur at the final period of the indignation, for it pertains to the appointed time of the end. The ram which you saw with the two horns represents the kings of Media and Persia. And the shaggy goat represents the kingdom of Greece, and the large horn that is between his eyes is the first king. And the broken horn and the four horns that arose in its place represent four kingdoms which will arise from his nation, although not with his power. And in the latter period of their rule, When the transgressors have run their course, A king will arise Insolent and skilled in intrigue. And his power will be mighty, but not by his own power, And he will destroy to an extraordinary degree And prosper and perform his will; He will destroy mighty men and the holy people. And through his shrewdness He will cause deceit to succeed by his influence; And he will magnify himself in his heart, And he will destroy many while they are at ease. He will even oppose the Prince of princes, But he will be broken without human agency. And the vision of the evenings and mornings Which has been told is true; But keep the vision secret, For it pertains to many days in the future. - it concerns the distant future.”

Then in chapter 9 Daniel is told that to “seal up vision and prophecy.” And then Daniel is told in DAN 12:4, “But as for you, Daniel, conceal these words and seal up the book until the end of time; many will go back and forth, and knowledge will increase.” Now, this all means while some of the prophecies in the book of Daniel have not been fulfilled as of yet such as the prophecy in DAN 9:24 which was fulfilled in principle at our Lord’s First Advent or Christ’s first coming, it will be fulfilled in full at His return, His Second Advent. When the Messianic age begins, the Millennial reign or the Kingdom of His righteousness is brought on, as the fourth prophecy in DAN 9:24 predicts;

Daniel is told that God will eventually accomplish all that was promised through the visions and prophecies he made in the book of Daniel , and therefore Daniel was to stamp “God’s seal on the visions and prophecies” which were eventually going to be fulfilled.” Some scholars believe that the end of the first seven years given in DAN 9:25 when it says “So you are to know and discern that from the issuing of a decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until Messiah the Prince there will be seven weeks or 49 years. And that this first 49 year period (called here in DAN 9:25 the first seven weeks) also brought with it the end of Old Testament vision and prophecy.

The prophetic book of Malachi was written in this general time frame and ushered in around 400 years of prophetic silence where no prophet heard from God for a 400 period. This was actually what we the age the silence of God.” And this is the fifth prophecy that our Lord will fulfill when He comes He will unveil all the prophecies that Daniel was told to seal and hide until the appropriate time.

So DAN 9:24 says, that our Lord is going to “ to seal up vision and prophecy,” it literally means that He is going to place His seal upon Him by giving what a seal in the Bible represents which is divine approval. You see, when the Bible talks about sealing it is not like the English definition. It doesn’t just mean to hide something. In the ancient, Sealing was a signature guarantee which was tantamount to a king sealing a proclamation, that became a law. When people signed a contract by using a wax seal, that was their guarantee from their integrity that they would fulfill their part.

Sealing as a signature was used as a guarantee of transactions, authentication of invoices, contracts, laws, directives, orders, policies of kings or rulers. It was a sign of integrity and virtue. The sealing of tombs, libraries, and treasuries indicated ownership. For example, let’s take salvation, the Holy Spirit makes five signature guarantees at the moment of our salvation:


1. God the Holy Spirit guarantees that your faith alone in Christ alone is effective for salvation. God the Holy Spirit takes the unbeliever’s faith alone in Christ alone and makes it effective for salvation. God the Holy Spirit guarantees His ministry of making that faith effective for salvation. God the Holy Spirit puts His seal on the unbeliever’s faith alone.

2. The Holy Spirit guarantees eternal life at the point of salvation to everyone who believes in Christ. He does this by the creation of the human spirit, to which God the Father imputes eternal life. God the Holy Spirit seals that eternal life, EPH 4:30, And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. There is nothing you or all the power of hell can ever do to cancel this guarantee.

3. God the Holy Spirit guarantees the eternal security of the believer at the moment of salvation. You cannot cancel the forty things God does for you at salvation. You cannot undo what God has done. You cannot renounce your faith in Christ and no longer be saved.

4. God the Holy Spirit guarantees the portfolio of invisible assets for every Church Age believer. There are two guarantees of our portfolio of invisible assets: the sealing ministry of the Holy Spirit at salvation and the indwelling of Christ as the Shekinah glory.

EPH 1:13, In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise,

2CO 1:21-22, ” But God [the Father] who strengthens us in Christ [predestination—the predesigned plan of God] along with you, and has anointed us [baptism of the Holy Spirit plus the sealing of the Holy Spirit], who also put a seal on us and has given us the Spirit in our right lobes [filling of the Holy Spirit] as a guarantee [down payment].”

5. God the Holy Spirit guarantees the redemption of the body on the day of redemption. Redemption of the body occurs at the Rapture or resurrection of the Church, EPH 4:30, ” You have been sealed to the day of redemption.” My point is that when the Lord Jesus Christ comes back He is going to bring all the visions and the prophecies that have been hidden to the light and make them all known as He places His seal, or His eternal guarantee upon all of them. As of know many of these visions and prophecies have been hidden but will become known. For even though Daniel was a mature believer; for at least 400 years God did not speak to anyone else all the way to the book of Malachi, God was silent! I don’t know how many of you have ever studied with me what I call “The Doctrine of the Silence of God.”

Many times God had been silent throughout human history as He was with Job because of the angelic conflict and the historical trial of Satan and all of the fallen angels. For example, in the book of Job Satan had actually been cross-examining Job and while he is doing so, God was completely silent...He does not interrupt the cross examination of Satan on God’s people. It is a part of what we call evidence testing, one of the highest forms of testing a believer can have the privilege of taken in order to glorify God. And when we noted in the book of Job, the opinion of the Divine Judge as Job passed the test magnificently, Satan has been silenced by the fantastic life of Job.

I’ve always loved what David said in one of his prayers, called an imprecatory prayer in PSA 58:6, O God, shatter their teeth in their mouth; Break out the fangs of the young lions, O Lord. Job was one of the greatest witnesses for the prosecution in all of the Old Testament! And along with Noah and Daniel, Job is one of the greatest all time believers who passes evidence testing. In fact, the prophet Ezekiel identified three men as one of the greatest believers of all time in EZE 14:12-14, note who they are. In Ezekiel the Lord is telling us how far astray His people have gone astray. And uses the principle of the pivot and how even if these great men or gracious men were present within the nation, He would still discipline it.

EZE 14:12-14, Then the word of the Lord came to me saying, “Son of man, if a country sins against Me by committing unfaithfulness, and I stretch out My hand against it, destroy its supply of bread, send famine against it, and cut off from it both man and beast, even though these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job were in its midst, by their own righteousness they could only deliver themselves, declares the Lord God.”

This means that God is declaring Noah, Daniel and Job as mature winner believers.

Now, when Job was being tested by Satan, God would not say anything for the moment because Satan must be permitted to cross examine Job in the historical trial of the angelic conflict without interference from God. This is the silence of God where God cannot speak during the cross examination by Satan.....where Satan says such things to Job such as. If God loves you so much Job why did he give me, Satan, permission to kill your children as we are told in Job 1:12, Then the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, all that he has is in your power, only do not put forth your hand on him.”

JOB 2:10, But he said to her, “You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we indeed accept good from God and not accept adversity?” In all this Job did not sin with his lips.

Then the biggest accusation that Satan has been making throughout human history is this: If the God you follow Job is suppose to be a God of love, how can a loving God cast His creatures into a lake of fire and brimstone? And of course the answer to this question is simple found in passages like HAB 1:13. The rules in the angelic conflict have already been given and Satan is following the rules, he is not taking Job’s life but he can do anything else he desires! And under the doctrine of the silence of God, God must remain silent and Job must handle this on his own with the doctrine resident in his own soul if Job truly desires to glorify God in the midst of the angelic conflict! In other words, it wasn’t time for the Lord to reveal His stamp of approval or His seal on Job’s life, at this time.

All undeserved suffering or suffering for blessing requires you to use the inventory of your doctrine...doctrine resident in your soul. Not someone else’s counsel! Not someone else’s encouragement! You must do it on your own from the resources of doctrine in your own soul. Right now Job is having a little trouble with the silence of God. He knows that he did nothing wrong to have this suffering. He knows that all of these disasters that came to him did not come because of any personal sin or divine discipline. There comes a time in the life of every believer when he must go it alone. You’re going to have that experience from time to time to see if the doctrine is there, alive, inside of you. Because God never lets you go it alone unless you’ve been exposed to the doctrine.

GAL 6:4-5, But let each one examine his own work, and then he will have reason for boasting in regard to himself alone, and not in regard to another. For each one shall bear his own load.

Do you realize that we live in the dispensation of the silence of God? We live in the dispensation called the Church-age. God does not speak personally and audibly like He did in other generations. We live at a time where our Lord’s commands and directions to Daniel were centered around two major principles:

1. Many of the prophecies were hidden even to Daniel.

2. These prophecies would be revealed by our Lord during the end times.

DAN 12:4-13, “But as for you, Daniel, conceal these words and seal up the book until the end of time; many will go back and forth, and knowledge will increase.” Then I, Daniel, looked and behold, two others were standing, one on this bank of the river, and the other on that bank of the river. And one said to the man dressed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, “How long will it be until the end of these wonders?” And I heard the man dressed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, as he raised his right hand and his left toward heaven, and swore by Him who lives forever that it would be for a time, times, and half a time; and as soon as they finish shattering the power of the holy people, all these events will be completed. As for me, I heard but could not understand; so I said, “My lord, what will be the outcome of these events?” And he said, “Go your way, Daniel, for these words are concealed and sealed up until the end time. “Many will be purged, purified and refined; but the wicked will act wickedly, and none of the wicked will understand, but those who have insight will understand. And from the time that the regular sacrifice is abolished, and the abomination of desolation is set up, there will be 1,290 days. How blessed is he who keeps waiting and attains to the 1,335 days! But as for you, go your way to the end; then you will enter into rest and rise again for your allotted portion at the end of the age.”

The following link is to a good news message describing how one can receive eternal life:
Ticket to Heaven, it was written for anyone not absolutely certain about their eternal future.

Internet Church Service – May 30, 2015

The Sword of the Spirit. The word of God Manifested in the life of Jesus.
The Doctrine of Feet. The Psalm of the Crucifixion. Psalm 22. Part 3. (continued)

Today’s Sermon Message:
The Sword of the Spirit. The word of God Manifested in the life of Jesus.
The Doctrine of Feet. The Psalm of the Crucifixion. Psalm 22. Part 3. (continued)

Video and Audio

Please join us as we fellowship in the Word of God, listen to
Christian Music, Pray in Christ’s Name and Praise the Lord
in our Hearts and Minds.

ALL ARE WELCOME

# # # # # # # #

from - Romans 8:38-39

Thank you for joining us for today’s worship service. Please enjoy the music before you listen to today’s message.

TIP to enlarge the print hold down the “Ctrl” key on your key board, while it is being held down, move your mouse forward until the desired print size is just right for you. To return to normal screen size, reverse the process (some will see a % in the lower right corner of your screen, normal is 100%)

The lyrics have been provided so you can sing along with the artist in your mind and soul; imagine that the artist’s voice is your voice. I’m not a very good singer myself so I often get the lyrics for some of my favorites and sing along in my mind and soul, this way it’s as if I’m doing the singing to the Lord; try it.

Hymn #1

We Choose the Fear of the Lord – Lyrics in Video
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Hymn #2

Trust and Obey – Lyrics in Video
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Preparing yourself for the study of God’s Word

Before we begin, if you are a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ (that is— you have trusted in Him for eternal life), it is important to prepare yourself to take-in God’s Word so take a moment to name, cite or acknowledge your sins privately to God the Father.

1 John 1:9 says—“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” NKJV (New King James Version)

If you have never personally believed in the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior (that is, believed in Him for eternal life), the issue for you is not to name your sins; the issue for you is faith alone in Jesus Christ alone:

John 6:47 says: “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me (Jesus Christ) has everlasting life.” NKJV

Notice again what John 6:47 says, “he who believes in Me (Jesus Christ) has everlasting life.” It doesn’t say, “will have”; it says, “has.” Therefore, the very moment you believe Jesus Christ’s promise of everlasting life, you have it (it’s really just that simple), and it can never be lost or taken away from you (John 10:28-29). Furthermore, the gift of everlasting life (also called eternal life in scripture) is available to every human being; there are absolutely no exceptions.

John 3:14-18 says: “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” NKJV

Let us now bow our hearts and take a moment to prepare for worship and learning God’s Word, if there is any known sin in your life, this is the time to just cite it privately to God the Father with your thoughts directed towards Him. With your head bowed and your eyes closed, you have total privacy in your mind and soul:

Lectionary

The word of God is alive and active, sharper than any double-edged sword. It cuts all the way through, to where soul and spirit meet, to where joints and marrow come together. It judges the desires and thoughts of the heart. (Heb. 4:12) GNB-UK

All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching the truth, rebuking error, correcting faults, and giving instruction for right living, so that the person who serves God may be fully qualified and equipped to do every kind of good deed. (2 Tim. 3:16-17) GNB-UK

Do your best to win full approval in God's sight, as a worker who is not ashamed of his work, one who correctly teaches the message of God's truth. (2 Tim. 2:15) GNB-UK

Study to show yourself approved to God!

Opening Prayer
(Do your best to make it your own – below is a sample prayer)

Heavenly Father, we pray that we will all be richly edified by Your Word today and that You will make what we study today clear to us. We pray that all participants in this service as well as those who review it at a later date will be edified and blessed by today’s message. We pray this in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen

Our guest Pastor-Teacher is:

Robert McLaughlin - Grace Bible Church
and Robert McLaughlin Bible Ministries

Doctrinal Statement

This ministry is non-denominational and is dedicated to teaching the Word of God from the original languages and making it available at no charge throughout the world.

Today's Sermon

The Sword of the Spirit. The word of God Manifested in the life of Jesus.
The Doctrine of Feet. The Psalm of the Crucifixion. Psalm 22. Part 3. (continued)

TO VIEW THE SERMON: Right click the link above, a small window will open then left click either “Open in New Window” or “Open in New Tab” and the church service notes page will open, it has three options in the upper right side of the page, right click the link titled “download mp3” and just like before, select either Open New Window or Open New Tab to open the MP3 player, this will leave the notes page open so you can move back to it, so go back to the notes page to follow along in the notes, the streaming audio should begin automatically in your default audio/video player (like, Windows Media Player).

If you need to leave the service, when you come back, to move the MP3 player forward, press and hold the left click down on the player progress bar where you see the little arrow under the time on progress bar and move your mouse forward

OPTIONAL: On-line Bible – NASB95

If you wish to use it, right click the link and in the drop-down box, left click the "Open Link in New Window"; when the new window opens, reduce the window size of both the on-line bible and the slideshow and configure them to be side-by-side. Also, the window opens to John 3:16, click the word “more” below the verse, you will then see two online bible columns, Use the column on the left as it is set for the NASB95, at the top of the column where you see John 3:16 in the search box, type the book and verse the Pastor asks you to go to a particular Bible verse, e.g., 1tim 5:21, or eph 3:10, etc., then click “Enter” on your key board. You can use the “right column” if you wish for a different bible version but you’ll need to type in the verse you want each time as I directed you for the column on the left side.

Hymn #3

Turn you eyes upon Jesus – Lyrics in Video
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CLOSING PRAYER:
(Again, below is a sample prayer, do your best to make it your own)

Heavenly Father, we pray that the Holy Spirit will make what I’ve learned today clear to me, for I pray this in my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ’s name. Amen

If you have any questions that are pertinent about today’s message, please don’t hesitate to ask, you are welcome to ask them via a private message or by a reply in today’s post. However, sometimes questions can be real short but require a much longer answer in order to give an adequate answer. If I don’t think that the question is able to be answered quickly I’ll reply back telling you that I’ll research it and get to you with the answer (it may even be a few days as I’m a little slower than I used to be). Please don’t let what I’ve just said make you hesitate to ask questions.

I want to thank all of you who have attended this Sunday service as well as those who will view it at a later time or date.

The following link is to a good news message describing how one can instantly receive eternal life: Ticket to Heaven, it was written for anyone not absolutely certain about their eternal future.

Weekly Bible Study – May 25, 2015

The Prophecy of Daniel 9.
The six different manifestations of
the prophecies given in Dan 9:24

PLEASE READ FIRST

Scripture References, Word & Phrase descriptions: If available on the website you're viewing this on, a few links (i.e., those without an already written scripture quote or brief explanation) are hover pop-up active, meaning the scripture reference will just pop-up if you hover your cursor over it (don’t click on the link, just hover your cursor over it), they work best using the Firefox browser – pop-ups in Internet Explorer, Chrome & other browsers only appear for a few seconds at best. If you don’t have Firefox (or hover pop-ups aren’t available on the website you’re viewing this on), that’s OK, move your cursor off and on the link until it is read; or left click the link which will open the verse at the online bible; or you can always use your Bible to look up the verses.

Prepare yourself for learning the Word of God!

Before we begin, if you are a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ (that is; you have believed [trusted] in Him for His promised gift of eternal life), it is important to prepare yourself to learn God's Word so take a moment to name, cite or acknowledge (confess) your sins privately to God (i.e.; with your thoughts directed only to God the Father).

1 John 1:9 says: "If we confess our sins, He (God) is faithful and just to forgive us our sins (known sins) and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness [unknown or forgotten sins]." NKJV (New King James Version) [italics added]

If you have never personally believed in the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior (that is, believed in Him for eternal life), the issue for you is not to name your sins; the issue for you is to have faith alone in Jesus Christ alone for eternal life:

John 6:47 says: "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me (Jesus Christ) has everlasting life." NKJV [italics added]

Notice again what Jesus said in John 6:47: "…he who believes in Me (Jesus Christ) has everlasting life." It doesn't say, "will have"; it says, "has." Therefore, the very moment you believe in Jesus Christ for His promise of everlasting life, you have it (it's really just that simple; nothing more and nothing less), and it can never be taken away from you (John 10:28-29). Furthermore, the gift (Ephesians 2:8c) of everlasting life (also called eternal life in scripture) is available to every human being; there are absolutely no exceptions.

John 3:14-18 says: "¹⁴ And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, ¹⁵ that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. ¹⁶ For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. ¹⁷ For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. ¹⁸ He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God." NKJV

Let us now bow our hearts and take a moment to prepare for worship and learning God's Word. If there is any known sin in your life, this is the time to just cite it privately to God the Father with your thoughts directed towards Him. With your head bowed and your eyes closed, you have total privacy in your mind and soul:

Study to show yourself approved to God!

Grace Bible Church
Robert R. McLaughlin Bible Ministries

The Tree of Life is a weekly teaching summary:
God’s Word is Wednesday, Friday and Sunday mornings

STUDY TITLE:

The Prophecy of Daniel 9.
The six different manifestations of
the prophecies given in Dan 9:24



OPTION: If you would prefer to go directly to the Grace Bible Church website to read this study message, all verse reference links are active there (but not hover active) and Enlarged Text is also an available option – right click the above link then left click “Open Link in New Window” or “New Tab”

Terms & Abbreviations used:

PPOG = Predesigned Plan of God
Human Good = Evil + Good Deeds while not in fellowship with God
OSN = Old Sin Nature
TLJC = The Lord Jesus Christ
SSE = Spiritual Self Esteem
PVTD = Positive Volition Towards Doctrine
+H - The Happiness of God
NVTD = Negative Volition Towards Doctrine
Doctrine = Bible Truth

To look up other “terms”, go to:

Alphabetical Listing

BEGIN BIBLE STUDY
Unless otherwise noted, all scripture quotes and references
are from the NASB – New American Standard Bible

The Prophecy of Daniel 9.
The six different manifestations of
the prophecies given in Dan 9:24

We are noting the six different manifestations of the prophecies given in DAN 9:24 that our Lord either already fulfilled, or will be fulfilled in the future. In DAN 9:24. there are six different prophecies mentioned that our Lord would fulfill.

DAN 9:24, “Seventy weeks have been decreed for your people and your holy city, to finish the transgression, to make an end of sin, to make atonement for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most holy place.”

Notice that this section lists six specific things that the Jews or Israel could expect their Redeemer and our Lord and Savior to fulfill. Three of them have negative connotations; three of them have positive connotations, though all six of them are divinely inspired. These six prophecies are:

1. To finish the transgression.
2. To make an end of sin.
3. To make atonement for iniquity.
4. to bring in everlasting righteousness.
5. to seal up vision and prophecy.
6. to anoint the most holy place.

We have already noted and completed the first two and we are ready to complete the third: “to make atonement for iniquity;” The third part of the prophecy deals with our Lord dealing with iniquity which is not only sin against God, but sins and crimes against divine establishment principles as well. In other words, iniquity also takes into account sins against the laws of the land, and sins against others. The word atonement comes from the Hebrew noun kopher and the verb is kapher which means to make reconciliation; or to satisfy and repair a wrong for injury; or to make amends. All of these definitions are in view in some capacity. However, what we are now concerned with is the relationship between the atonement and what is known as the Ark of the Covenant. In fact, the Ark of the Covenant is the key to understanding the doctrine of the Atonement. This is what the writer of the book of Hebrews reveals in HEB 9:1-4.

HEB 9:1-4, Now even the first covenant had regulations of divine worship and the earthly sanctuary. This refers to the rules of worship in the Old Testament. The Old Testament was filled with rules on how to worship and honor God. For there was a tabernacle prepared, the outer one, in which were the lampstand and the table and the sacred bread; this is called the holy place. And behind the second veil, there was a tabernacle which is called the Holy of Holies, having a golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold, in which was a golden jar holding the manna, and Aaron’s rod which budded, and the tables of the covenant.

All of this is the background to what Daniel prophesied in DAN 9:24 when the third prophecy is mentioned: “Seventy weeks have been decreed for your people and your holy city, to finish the transgression, to make an end of sin, to make atonement for iniquity,” Iniquities contain a lot more negative consequences than sin, and when our Lord died for us He also set us free from the guilt that accompanies the most wicked sins that could ever be committed. However, notice I did not say that He freed us from the consequences of the sin because whether we like it or not GAL 6:7, Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. I would love to say to some of you who are reaping the consequences of your decisions that they are now taken away...but I can’t!

There comes a time when we have to answer for the decisions that we make no matter how loving and merciless our God is. There are times when we must answer for what we have done! However, the atonement says that God is satisfied with us even though we are reaping what we have sown. There were three things in the tabernacle which were used to illustrate eternal salvation and the atonement. God had instructed the Jews to build the Ark of the Covenant. The Ark was a box made of acacia wood and overlaid with Gold. The wood spoke of the humanity of Christ, the gold spoke of the deity of Christ, and together they revealed the Hypostatic-union. Therefore the Ark was a picture of the Lord bearing our sins.

Inside were three things that represented certain categories of sin: There was the Tablets of the Ten Commandments. There was also a pot of Manna representing rejection of God’s provisions. Then there was Aaron’s rod that budded: Revolt against God’s authority (Levitical tribe). The Ark of the Covenant was filled with items that represented man’s sins and pointed to 2CO 5:21, “He who knew no sin was made sin for us.” Over the top of the box was a Mercy Seat (a solid gold throne) and on each end of the throne was a Cherub (highest ranking of all angels). 1st Cherub represented the absolute righteousness (+R) of God. The 2nd Cherub represented the Justice of God. The first Cherub reveals that +R looks down and condemns sin in man. In ROM 3:23, Man has sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, The second Cherub represents the Justice of God which reveals the penalty for man which is ROM 6:23, For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Because the righteousness of God and the justice of God sees the mercy seat, both the righteousness of God and the justice of God are completely satisfied because they see the mercy seat, then man is free from eternal condemnation.

So we have in the Ark and Mercy Seat a picture of God’s satisfaction with the work of Jesus Christ (Propitiation) or the divine viewpoint of salvation. +R and Justice are satisfied. When it comes to the subject of atonement we are interested in the items that were placed within the ark which are given in HEB 9:1-4, however, we need to go to Heb 8 beginning at verse 8 where the writer reveals that: Again we must begin for the sake of content with HEB 8:8-9:4, For finding fault with them, He says, “Behold, days are coming, says the Lord, When I will effect a new covenant With the house of Israel and with the house of Judah; Not like the covenant which I made with their fathers On the day when I took them by the hand To lead them out of the land of Egypt; For they did not continue in My covenant, And I did not care for them, says the Lord. “For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel After those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws into their minds, And I will write them upon their hearts. And I will be their God, And they shall be My people. And they shall not teach everyone his fellow citizen, And everyone his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ For all shall know Me, From the least to the greatest of them. “For I will be merciful to their iniquities, And I will remember their sins no more.” When He said, “A new covenant,” He has made the first obsolete. But whatever is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to disappear. Now even the first covenant had regulations of divine worship and the earthly sanctuary. For there was a tabernacle prepared, the outer one, in which were the lampstand and the table and the sacred bread; this is called the holy place. And behind the second veil, there was a tabernacle which is called the Holy of Holies, having a golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold, in which was a golden jar holding the manna, and Aaron’s rod which budded, and the tables of the covenant.

What we are interested in is what was inside of the ark which was placed inside of what we call the Holy of Holies which was inside of the tabernacle. And it is those three items mentioned in verse 3 that is our subject, the Manna, Aaron’s rod that budded, and the tablets of the Law, the Ten Commandments. The contents of the box is not only described in Hebrews 9:4, but also in Numbers 17:8-10. So we have the urn of Manna representing sin in the sense of rejection of God’s provision. It is just like some believers; they have neglected Bible doctrine and are therefore losing out on the fantastic blessings God has designed for them. Secondly, we have Aaron’s rod which germinated and sprouted some kind of a flower. The sprouting of the flower revealed God’s choice of what tribe had the authority and the priesthood over all the other tribes. The Jews rejected this and therefore Aaron’s rod was placed inside the ark as a sign of their rejection and rebellion against God’s order and God’s authority. When God sets up authority it may not look like much but if God sets it up it has His backing.

The third item was the tables of the law. These represent sin as a transgression of God’s rules and laws for His people.

Most of you are familiar with the Mosaic Law and how the Jews made a golden calf when Moses while on the top of Mount Sinai receiving the Ten Commandments from God. So, those commandments were put in the Ark as a sign of the rebellion and sins of the Jewish people. Then there was Aaron’s rod that budded that represented the rebellion of the Jews against the authority given to Moses by God. The Jews rejected the authority God gave His man Moses and His brother Aaron, both of the tribe of Levi whom God had chosen to rule His people and who rebelled against God’s man and God’s appointment. So the Jews rebelled against God’s appointment and therefore Aarons rod was placed inside the ark as a symbol of their rejection of God’s authority. Well, let us look at the story again because we have been through the passage rather quickly just to give you some background to it.

In Numbers 17, we have The Budding of Aaron’s Rod

First of all, in verses 1-3, we have a test commanded by God where we have the gathering of rods, identified with each tribe. NUM 17:1-3, Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the sons of Israel, and get from them a rod for each father’s household: twelve rods, from all their leaders according to their fathers’ households. You shall write each name on his rod, and write Aaron’s name on the rod of Levi; for there is one rod for the head of each of their fathers’ households.”

A rod was a symbol of authority, because shepherds would use a rod to guide and correct the sheep, PSA 23:4b, Thy rod and Thy staff, they comfort me. As a shepherd, Moses had a rod in his hand when tending sheep in the wilderness (EXO 4:2); this rod later became known as the rod of God - a symbol of the authority God gave to Moses (EXO 4:20). This same rod demonstrated Moses’ authority in action, by miraculously becoming a serpent, and then becoming a rod again and was used to bring about the 10 plagues on Egypt. In gathering rods, and inscribing each with the name of a tribe, and on Levi’s rod inscribing Aaron’s name, God would declare which tribe possessed priestly authority by choosing one of the rods. This was the issue at hand in light of Korah’s rebellion.

NUM 17:4-5, “You shall then deposit them in the tent of meeting in front of the testimony, where I meet with you. “And it will come about that the rod of the man whom I choose will sprout. Thus I shall lessen from upon Myself the grumblings of the sons of Israel, who are grumbling against you.”

When it says in verse 5, the rod of the man whom I choose will sprout or blossom, the blossoming of dead wood spoke of miraculous fruitfulness being present when godly authority and leadership is being practiced. And believe it or not, the Jews also rejected this. Even though the Lord said in verse 5, I will rid Myself of their grumblings and murmurings.

This did not mean that the children of Israel would never complain again, it simply refereed to their murmuring and complaining about only Aaron’s rod blossoming while theirs did not.

So God demonstrated more and more sufficient evidence to their murmuring and complaining and said he would no longer pay attention to them regard their murmuring. Though indeed, He would eventually judge their murmuring.

In verse 6-7, God gave them tests and the tests would vindicate Aaron as God’s priestly leader.

NUM 17:6-9, Moses therefore spoke to the sons of Israel, and all their leaders gave him a rod apiece, for each leader according to their fathers’ households, twelve rods, with the rod of Aaron among their rods. So Moses deposited the rods before the Lord in the tent of the testimony. Now it came about on the next day that Moses went into the tent of the testimony; and behold, the rod of Aaron for the house of Levi had sprouted and put forth buds and produced blossoms, and it bore ripe almonds. Moses then brought out all the rods from the presence of the Lord to all the sons of Israel; and they looked, and each man took his rod.

When Moses checked on the rods the next day, Aaron’s rod - and only Aaron’s rod - had sprouted. It not only sprouted, it had put forth buds. It had not only put forth buds, it had produced blossoms. It had not only produced blossoms, it had yielded almonds. It had not only yielded almonds, it yielded ripe almonds! This was a place where you would think a miracle would have been convincing enough. After all, God could have merely made a little green sprout come forth from Aaron’s rod alone, and that would have, or should have been enough.

But God gave, as in the words of Acts 1:3, many infallible proofs, to demonstrate His approval of Aaron’s leadership.

God gives us more than enough evidence; our problem is a lack of willingness to see what He has made clear. The whole test meant Aaron was God’s chosen priest, and the nation was required to recognize it. And notice the last phrase in verse 9, that each man took his rod: This was a dramatic scene. Each murmurer from the different tribe took his rod, and clearly saw that his had not budded or borne fruit, and that Aaron’s had. Therefore, as a symbol and sign of their rebellion notice what we read in verses 10-11.

NUM 17:10-11, But the Lord said to Moses, “Put back the rod of Aaron before the testimony to be kept as a sign against the rebels, that you may put an end to their grumblings against Me, so that they should not die.” Thus Moses did; just as the Lord had commanded him, so he did.

Notice in verse 10, that Aaron’s rod was be kept as a sign against the rebels: The rod of Aaron was to be kept as a museum piece, to remind the children of Israel that God had chosen a priesthood, and nothing would change that. Aaron’s priesthood would always be Aaron’s priesthood. The phrase to bring Aaron’s rod back before the Testimony means that Aaron’s rod was to be kept in the ark of the covenant, as another example of Israel’s failure and rebellion. And so when God looked down from heaven into the ark, He saw emblems of Israel’s sin: The tablets of the Law they broke, the manna they complained about, and Aaron’s rod that they rebelled against.

All three items were designed to illustrate the wickedness of man but how it is about to be solved by the mercy of God. In the spiritual realm, this was all covered paid for and fulfilled when our Lord fulfilled the third prophecy mentioned in DAN 9:24...” to make atonement for iniquity.” Inside of the Ark our Lord atoned for or paid the price for the sin of rebellion which is such a very serious sin that the prophet Samuel wrote in 1SA 15:23, “For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, And insubordination is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He has also rejected you from being king.”

And so we have noted the Jews and their rejection of the Ten Commandments in the past. And then we just looked at the teaching of Aaron’s rod that budded. Let’s take a look at why the urn of manna was placed inside of the ark as a sign of the Jews rebellion against the provisions of God.

EXO 16:1-4, Then they set out from Elim, and all the congregation of the sons of Israel came to the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after their departure from the land of Egypt. And the whole congregation of the sons of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. And the sons of Israel said to them, “Would that we had died by the Lord’s hand in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the pots of meat, when we ate bread to the full; for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.” Then the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day, that I may test them, whether or not they will walk in My instruction.”

God called this bread lechem meaning food or bread. However, that it wasn’t they called it. They called it manhu meaning: What is it? And then they finally called it Manna. It was logistical grace from God. It was God making sure that the Jews would be provided everything that they would need to sustain them. Manna was a challenge to the daily function of the faith-rest drill, for God had specified definite requirements which are equivalent to a challenge of positive volition toward the word of God. In other words, the Lord not only gave them the manna, but he also gave them instructions to follow concerning the manna. And if they did not follow these instructions properly, then the manna would not benefit them at all. In fact, just the opposite, the manna would become a snare to them, it bred worms. Here again, we have the importance of following the Lord’s directions or doing a right thing in a right way. This is the whole principle behind God’s plan for the Church-age believer...which is what we call the Pre-designed Plan of God (PPOG). The PPOG is a strict system of procedure based upon the accurate teaching of the word of God. It is based upon the very simple statement that a right thing must be done in a right way! It must be precise and correct in its’ procedure. There is nothing sloppy in the procedure of the Christian way of life.

So God provided the perfect food for them every day. Every day except one, food was provided. Sunday - Friday, every morning food was provided for the rebellious children of Israel. And they had to gather every day, just enough for one day only. On Friday morning, they gathered a double portion because Saturday was the Sabbath and they were told to rest and eat the double portion that God gave them on Friday to sustain them for Saturday only. However, they became greedy and gathered up too much every day and the manna became spoiled and tasted rotten and was filled with maggots and worms. And so they ended naturally complaining once again.

EXO 16:4, Then the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day, that I may test them, whether or not they will walk in My instruction.”

The test was to see whether or not they would follow the Lord’s directions and do things “His way.” They would have to gather a double portion on Friday or else they would have nothing to eat on the Sabbath. In other words, there would be one day a week in which they would have to rely on what they had gathered previously. And this required faith. Now this was all very simple to those who lived by doctrine, but not simple to those who lived by their emotions. And their attitude was their real problem for in EXO 16:2-4, And the whole congregation of the sons of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. And the sons of Israel said to them, “Would that we had died by the Lord’s hand in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the pots of meat, when we ate bread to the full; for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.” Then the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day, that I may test them, whether or not they will walk in My instruction.”

The reason that the Lord did this is because they are complaining again...they are dissatisfied and they are expressing it. And notice the word walk. It says that I may test them, whether or not they will walk in My instruction. Walking is a daily thing! And doctrine is a daily thing. It isn’t something you do once and a while. It is a daily thing. And notice that he tested them to see whether they would walk in his instruction...daily! This is where they would get their spiritual strength to get their problem solving devices. Walking in instruction daily.

EPH 5:15-16, Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men, but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil. so then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.

So we are to walk in the plan of God and in the will of God, walking is analogous to life in the PPOG.

1JO 1:6-7, If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; But if we walk in the light as he himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.

1JO 2:6, The one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked.

2JO 1:6, And this is love, that we walk according to His commandments. This is the commandment, just as you have heard from the beginning, that you should walk in it.

3JO 1:3-4, For I was very glad when brethren came and bore witness to your truth, that is, how you are walking in truth. I have no greater joy than this, to hear of my children walking in the truth.

Note that if the manna was kept overnight, it spoiled. They did not listen to Moses, what’s new? And some left part of it until morning, In other words, they got greedy and filled their tents with the manna, and in the morning they had the biggest mess you could imagine. Maggots all over the place. And it bred worms, or as the Hebrew says...it was filled with maggots. And became foul; or it really began to stink. And so this is why an urn of manna was placed inside the ark and falls under the doctrine of atoning iniquities because one of the worse sins a believer can commit is being ungrateful, implacable, followed by murmuring and complaining to the man of God (in this cases Moses), and then God Himself. As the Lord said to Samuel in 1SA 8:7b, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me.

The following link is to a good news message describing how one can receive eternal life:
Ticket to Heaven, it was written for anyone not absolutely certain about their eternal future.

Internet Church Service – May 24, 2015

The Sword of the Spirit. The word of God Manifested in the life of Jesus.
The Doctrine of Feet. Part 3.

Today’s Sermon Message:
The Sword of the Spirit. The word of God Manifested in the life of Jesus.
The Doctrine of Feet. Part 3.
Video and Audio

Please join us as we fellowship in the Word of God, listen to
Christian Music, Pray in Christ’s Name and Praise the Lord
in our Hearts and Minds.

ALL ARE WELCOME

# # # # # # # #

from - Romans 8:38-39

Thank you for joining us for today’s worship service. Please enjoy the music before you listen to today’s message.

TIP to enlarge the print hold down the “Ctrl” key on your key board, while it is being held down, move your mouse forward until the desired print size is just right for you. To return to normal screen size, reverse the process (some will see a % in the lower right corner of your screen, normal is 100%)

The lyrics have been provided so you can sing along with the artist in your mind and soul; imagine that the artist’s voice is your voice. I’m not a very good singer myself so I often get the lyrics for some of my favorites and sing along in my mind and soul, this way it’s as if I’m doing the singing to the Lord; try it.

Hymn #1

US Navy and US Marine Corps Tribute – No Video
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Hymn #2

Till The Last Shots Fired
Wounded Warrior Project
Trace Adkins Tribute – No Video
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You can usually skip the commercial if there is one.)

Preparing yourself for the study of God’s Word

Before we begin, if you are a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ (that is— you have trusted in Him for eternal life), it is important to prepare yourself to take-in God’s Word so take a moment to name, cite or acknowledge your sins privately to God the Father.

1 John 1:9 says—“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” NKJV (New King James Version)

If you have never personally believed in the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior (that is, believed in Him for eternal life), the issue for you is not to name your sins; the issue for you is faith alone in Jesus Christ alone:

John 6:47 says: “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me (Jesus Christ) has everlasting life.” NKJV

Notice again what John 6:47 says, “he who believes in Me (Jesus Christ) has everlasting life.” It doesn’t say, “will have”; it says, “has.” Therefore, the very moment you believe Jesus Christ’s promise of everlasting life, you have it (it’s really just that simple), and it can never be lost or taken away from you (John 10:28-29). Furthermore, the gift of everlasting life (also called eternal life in scripture) is available to every human being; there are absolutely no exceptions.

John 3:14-18 says: “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” NKJV

Let us now bow our hearts and take a moment to prepare for worship and learning God’s Word, if there is any known sin in your life, this is the time to just cite it privately to God the Father with your thoughts directed towards Him. With your head bowed and your eyes closed, you have total privacy in your mind and soul:

Lectionary

The word of God is alive and active, sharper than any double-edged sword. It cuts all the way through, to where soul and spirit meet, to where joints and marrow come together. It judges the desires and thoughts of the heart. (Heb. 4:12) GNB-UK

All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching the truth, rebuking error, correcting faults, and giving instruction for right living, so that the person who serves God may be fully qualified and equipped to do every kind of good deed. (2 Tim. 3:16-17) GNB-UK

Do your best to win full approval in God's sight, as a worker who is not ashamed of his work, one who correctly teaches the message of God's truth. (2 Tim. 2:15) GNB-UK

Study to show yourself approved to God!

Opening Prayer
(Do your best to make it your own – below is a sample prayer)

Heavenly Father, we pray that we will all be richly edified by Your Word today and that You will make what we study today clear to us. We pray that all participants in this service as well as those who review it at a later date will be edified and blessed by today’s message. We pray this in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen

Our guest Pastor-Teacher is:

Robert McLaughlin - Grace Bible Church
and Robert McLaughlin Bible Ministries

Doctrinal Statement

This ministry is non-denominational and is dedicated to teaching the Word of God from the original languages and making it available at no charge throughout the world.

Today's Sermon

The Sword of the Spirit. The word of God Manifested in the life of Jesus.
The Doctrine of Feet. Part 3.

TO VIEW THE SERMON: Right click the link above, a small window will open then left click either “Open in New Window” or “Open in New Tab” and the church service notes page will open, it has three options in the upper right side of the page, right click the link titled “download mp3” and just like before, select either Open New Window or Open New Tab to open the MP3 player, this will leave the notes page open so you can move back to it, so go back to the notes page to follow along in the notes, the streaming audio should begin automatically in your default audio/video player (like, Windows Media Player).

If you need to leave the service, when you come back, to move the MP3 player forward, press and hold the left click down on the player progress bar where you see the little arrow under the time on progress bar and move your mouse forward

OPTIONAL: On-line Bible – NASB95

If you wish to use it, right click the link and in the drop-down box, left click the "Open Link in New Window"; when the new window opens, reduce the window size of both the on-line bible and the slideshow and configure them to be side-by-side. Also, the window opens to John 3:16, click the word “more” below the verse, you will then see two online bible columns, Use the column on the left as it is set for the NASB95, at the top of the column where you see John 3:16 in the search box, type the book and verse the Pastor asks you to go to a particular Bible verse, e.g., 1tim 5:21, or eph 3:10, etc., then click “Enter” on your key board. You can use the “right column” if you wish for a different bible version but you’ll need to type in the verse you want each time as I directed you for the column on the left side.

Hymn #3

Amazing Grace - Leann Rimes’ Tribute To The True Meaning of Memorial Day – No Lyrics in Video
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Hymn #4

Taps performed in Arlington National Cemetery (summer and winter)
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CLOSING PRAYER:
(Again, below is a sample prayer, do your best to make it your own)

Heavenly Father, we pray that the Holy Spirit will make what I’ve learned today clear to me, for I pray this in my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ’s name. Amen

If you have any questions that are pertinent about today’s message, please don’t hesitate to ask, you are welcome to ask them via a private message or by a reply in today’s post. However, sometimes questions can be real short but require a much longer answer in order to give an adequate answer. If I don’t think that the question is able to be answered quickly I’ll reply back telling you that I’ll research it and get to you with the answer (it may even be a few days as I’m a little slower than I used to be). Please don’t let what I’ve just said make you hesitate to ask questions.

I want to thank all of you who have attended this Sunday service as well as those who will view it at a later time or date.

The following link is to a good news message describing how one can instantly receive eternal life: Ticket to Heaven, it was written for anyone not absolutely certain about their eternal future.

Weekly Bible Study – May 18, 2015

The Prophecy of Daniel 9.
What it means to make atonement for iniquity.

PLEASE READ FIRST

Scripture References, Word & Phrase descriptions: If available on the website you're viewing this on, a few links (i.e., those without an already written scripture quote or brief explanation) are hover pop-up active, meaning the scripture reference will just pop-up if you hover your cursor over it (don’t click on the link, just hover your cursor over it), they work best using the Firefox browser – pop-ups in Internet Explorer, Chrome & other browsers only appear for a few seconds at best. If you don’t have Firefox (or hover pop-ups aren’t available on the website you’re viewing this on), that’s OK, move your cursor off and on the link until it is read; or left click the link which will open the verse at the online bible; or you can always use your Bible to look up the verses.

Prepare yourself for learning the Word of God!

Before we begin, if you are a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ (that is; you have believed [trusted] in Him for His promised gift of eternal life), it is important to prepare yourself to learn God's Word so take a moment to name, cite or acknowledge (confess) your sins privately to God (i.e.; with your thoughts directed only to God the Father).

1 John 1:9 says: "If we confess our sins, He (God) is faithful and just to forgive us our sins (known sins) and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness [unknown or forgotten sins]." NKJV (New King James Version) [italics added]

If you have never personally believed in the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior (that is, believed in Him for eternal life), the issue for you is not to name your sins; the issue for you is to have faith alone in Jesus Christ alone for eternal life:

John 6:47 says: "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me (Jesus Christ) has everlasting life." NKJV [italics added]

Notice again what Jesus said in John 6:47: "…he who believes in Me (Jesus Christ) has everlasting life." It doesn't say, "will have"; it says, "has." Therefore, the very moment you believe in Jesus Christ for His promise of everlasting life, you have it (it's really just that simple; nothing more and nothing less), and it can never be taken away from you (John 10:28-29). Furthermore, the gift (Ephesians 2:8c) of everlasting life (also called eternal life in scripture) is available to every human being; there are absolutely no exceptions.

John 3:14-18 says: "¹⁴ And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, ¹⁵ that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. ¹⁶ For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. ¹⁷ For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. ¹⁸ He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God." NKJV

Let us now bow our hearts and take a moment to prepare for worship and learning God's Word. If there is any known sin in your life, this is the time to just cite it privately to God the Father with your thoughts directed towards Him. With your head bowed and your eyes closed, you have total privacy in your mind and soul:

Study to show yourself approved to God!

Grace Bible Church
Robert R. McLaughlin Bible Ministries

The Tree of Life is a weekly teaching summary:
God’s Word is Wednesday, Friday and Sunday mornings

STUDY TITLE:

The Prophecy of Daniel 9.
What it means to make atonement for iniquity.



OPTION: If you would prefer to go directly to the Grace Bible Church website to read this study message, all verse reference links are active there (but not hover active) and Enlarged Text is also an available option – right click the above link then left click “Open Link in New Window” or “New Tab”

Terms & Abbreviations used:

PPOG = Predesigned Plan of God
Human Good = Evil + Good Deeds while not in fellowship with God
OSN = Old Sin Nature
TLJC = The Lord Jesus Christ
SSE = Spiritual Self Esteem
PVTD = Positive Volition Towards Doctrine
+H - The Happiness of God
NVTD = Negative Volition Towards Doctrine
Doctrine = Bible Truth

To look up other “terms”, go to:

Alphabetical Listing

BEGIN BIBLE STUDY
Unless otherwise noted, all scripture quotes and references
are from the NASB – New American Standard Bible

The Prophecy of Daniel 9.
What it means to make atonement for iniquity.

We are now noting in DAN 9:24 the six different prophecies of our Lord fulfilling what I like to call “The Purpose of the Seventy Sevens or the 490 years mentioned in DAN 9:24.”

DAN 9:24, “Seventy weeks have been decreed for your people and your holy city, to finish the transgression, to make an end of sin, to make atonement for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most holy place.”

Notice that this section lists six specific things that the Jews or Israel could expect their Redeemer and our Lord and Savior to fulfill. Three of them have negative connotations; three of them have positive connotations, though all six of them are divinely inspired. And of course they are as follows, though I did change the presentation of the order but didnt touch the fulfillment of the order at all.

So, in the order given in verse 24 they are:

1. to finish the transgression;
2. to make an end of sin;
3. to make atonement for iniquity;
4. to bring in everlasting righteousness;
5. to seal up vision and prophecy;
6. to anoint the most holy place.

We have already noted and completed the first two and we are ready to complete the third: “to make atonement for iniquity;” The third part of the prophecy deals with our Lord dealing with iniquity which is not only sin against God, but sins and crimes against divine establishment principles as well. In other words, iniquity also takes into account sins against the laws of the land, especially sins against others. The word atonement comes from the Hebrew noun kopher and the verb is kapher which means to make reconciliation; or to satisfy and repair a wrong for injury; or to make amends. All of these definitions are in view in some capacity.

However, what we are now concerned with is the relationship between the atonement and what is known as the ark of the Covenant. In fact, the Ark of the Covenant is the key to understanding the doctrine of the Atonement. This is what the writer of the book of Hebrews reveals in HEB 9:1-4.

HEB 9:1-4, Now even the first covenant had regulations of divine worship and the earthly sanctuary. This refers to the rules of worship in the Old Testament. The Old Testament was filled with rules on how to worship and honor God. For there was a tabernacle prepared, the outer one, in which were the lampstand and the table and the sacred bread; this is called the holy place. And behind the second veil, there was a tabernacle which is called the Holy of Holies, having a golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold, in which was a golden jar holding the manna, and Aaron’s rod which budded, and the tables of the covenant.

All of this is the background to what Daniel prophesied in DAN 9:24 when the third prophecy is mentioned: “Seventy weeks have been decreed for your people and your holy city, to finish the transgression, to make an end of sin, to make atonement for iniquity,”

Iniquities contain a lot more negative consequences than sin, and when our Lord died for us He also set us free from the guilt that accompanies the most wicked sins that could ever be committed. However, notice I did not say that He freed us from the consequences of the sin because whether we like it or not GAL 6:7 still applies: Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. I would love to say to some of you who are reaping the consequences of your decisions that they are now taken away...but I can’t!

There comes a time when we have to answer for the decisions that we make no matter how loving and merciless our God is, there are times when we must answer or pay the price for what we have done! However, the atonement says that God is satisfied with us even though we are reaping what we have sown. There were three things in the tabernacle which were used to illustrate eternal salvation and the atonement. God had instructed the Jews to build the ark of the covenant. The ark was a box made of acacia wood and overlaid with Gold. The wood spoke of the humanity of Christ, the gold spoke of the deity of Christ, and together it revealed the Hypostatic-union. Therefore the ark was a picture of the Lord bearing our sins.

Inside of the box are three things which represented certain categories of sin: There was the Tablets of the Ten Commandments. There was also a Pot of Manna representing Rejection of God’s provisions. Then there was Aaron’s rod that budded: Revolt against God’s authority (Levitical tribe). The point is that the ark of the covenant was filled with items that represented man’s sins and pointed to 2CO 5:21, “He who knew no sin was made sin for us.”


Over the top of the box was a Mercy Seat (a solid gold throne) and on each end of the throne was a cherub (highest ranking of all angels). 1st cherub represented the absolute righteousness (+R) of God. The 2nd cherub represented the justice of God. The first cherub reveals that +R looks down and condemns sin in man, because in ROM 3:23 Man has sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, The second cherub represents the justice of God which reveals the penalty for man which is ROM 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Because the righteousness of God and the justice of God sees the mercy seat, both the righteousness of God and the justice of God are completely satisfied because they see the mercy seat, then man is free from eternal condemnation.

So we have in the Ark and Mercy Seat a picture of God’s satisfaction with the work of Jesus Christ (Propitiation) or the divine viewpoint of salvation. +R and Justice are satisfied.

When it comes to the subject of atonement we are interested in the items that were placed within the ark which are given in HEB 9:1-4, however, we need to go to Heb 8 beginning at verse 8 where the writer reveals that: Again we must begin for the sake of content with HEB 8:8-9:4, For finding fault with them, He says, “Behold, days are coming, says the Lord, When I will effect a new covenant With the house of Israel and with the house of Judah; Not like the covenant which I made with their fathers On the day when I took them by the hand To lead them out of the land of Egypt; For they did not continue in My covenant, And I did not care for them, says the Lord. “For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel After those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws into their minds, And I will write them upon their hearts. And I will be their God, And they shall be My people. And they shall not teach everyone his fellow citizen, And everyone his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ For all shall know Me, From the least to the greatest of them. “For I will be merciful to their iniquities, And I will remember their sins no more.” When He said, “A new covenant,” He has made the first obsolete. But whatever is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to disappear. Now even the first covenant had regulations of divine worship and the earthly sanctuary. For there was a tabernacle prepared, the outer one, in which were the lampstand and the table and the sacred bread; this is called the holy place. And behind the second veil, there was a tabernacle which is called the Holy of Holies, having a golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold, in which was a golden jar holding the manna, and Aaron’s rod which budded, and the tables of the covenant.

What we are interested in is what was inside of the ark which was placed inside of what we call the Holy of Holies which was inside of the tabernacle. And it is those three items mentioned in verse 3 that is our subject, the manna, Aaron’s rod that budded, and the tablets of the Law, or the Ten commandments. The contents of the box is not only described here in Hebrews 9:4 but also in Numbers 17:8-10. So we have the urn of manna representing sin in the sense of rejection of God’s provision. It is just like some believers; they have neglected Bible doctrine and are therefore losing out on the fantastic blessings God has designed for them from eternity past. Secondly, we have Aaron’s rod which germinated and sprouted some kind of a flower. The sprouting of the flower revealed God’s choice of what tribe had the authority and the priesthood over all the other tribes. The Jews rejected this and therefore Aaron’s rod was placed inside the ark as a sign of their rejection and rebellion against God’s order and God’s authority. God chose Aaron as the high priest. When God sets up authority it may not look like much but if God sets it up it has His backing.

The third item was the tables of the law. These represent sin as a transgression of God’s rules and laws for His people.

Now, most of you are familiar with the Mosaic Law and how the Jews made a golden calf when Moses was on the top of Mount Sinai receiving the Ten Commandments from God. So, those commandments were put in the ark as a sign of the rebellion and sins of the Jewish people. Then there was Aaron’s rod that budded that represented the rebellion of the Jews against the authority given to Moses by God. The Jews rejected the authority God gave His man Moses and His brother Aaron who both were of the tribe of Levi whom God had chosen to rule His people and who rebelled against God’s man and God’s appointment.

So the Jews rebelled against God’s appointment and therefore Aarons rod was placed inside the ark as a symbol of their rejection of God’s authority. Well, let us look at the story again because we have been through the passage rather quickly just to give you some background to it.

In Numbers 17, we have The Budding of Aaron’s Rod

First of all, in verses 1-3, we have a test commanded by God where we have the gathering of rods, identified with each tribe. NUM 17:1-3, Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the sons of Israel, and get from them a rod for each father’s household: twelve rods, from all their leaders according to their fathers’ households. You shall write each name on his rod, and write Aaron’s name on the rod of Levi; for there is one rod for the head of each of their fathers’ households.”

A rod was a symbol of authority, because shepherds would use a rod to guide and correct the sheep, PSA 23:4b Thy rod and Thy staff, they comfort me. As a shepherd, Moses had a rod in his hand when tending sheep in the wilderness (EXO 4:2); this rod later became known as the rod of God - a symbol of the authority God gave to Moses (EXO 4:20).

This same rod demonstrated Moses’ authority in action, by miraculously becoming a serpent, and then becoming a rod again and was used to bring about the 10 plagues on Egypt. In gathering rods, and inscribing each with the name of a tribe, and on Levi’s rod inscribing Aaron’s name, God would declare which tribe possessed priestly authority by choosing one of the rods. This was the issue at hand in light of Korah’s rebellion.

Now, notice in verses 4-5, the rods were to be placed in the tabernacle for God’s choosing.

NUM 17:4-5, “You shall then deposit them in the tent of meeting in front of the testimony, where I meet with you. “And it will come about that the rod of the man whom I choose will sprout. Thus I shall lessen from upon Myself the grumblings of the sons of Israel, who are grumbling against you. ”

When it says in verse 5, the rod of the man whom I choose will sprout or blossom, the blossoming of dead wood spoke of miraculous fruitfulness being present when godly authority and leadership is being practiced. And believe it or not, the Jews also rejected this. Even though the Lord said in verse 5, I will rid Myself of their grumblings and murmurings.

This did not mean that the children of Israel would never complain again, it simply refereed to their murmuring and complaining about only Aaron’s rod blossoming while theirs did not.

And so God demonstrated more and more sufficient evidence to their murmuring and complaining and said he would no longer pay attention to them regard their murmuring. Though indeed, He would eventually judge their murmuring.

In verse 6-7, God gave them tests and the tests would vindicate Aaron as God’s priestly leader.

NUM 17:6-9, Moses therefore spoke to the sons of Israel, and all their leaders gave him a rod apiece, for each leader according to their fathers’ households, twelve rods, with the rod of Aaron among their rods. So Moses deposited the rods before the Lord in the tent of the testimony. Now it came about on the next day that Moses went into the tent of the testimony; and behold, the rod of Aaron for the house of Levi had sprouted and put forth buds and produced blossoms, and it bore ripe almonds. Moses then brought out all the rods from the presence of the Lord to all the sons of Israel; and they looked, and each man took his rod.

When Moses checked on the rods the next day, Aaron’s rod - and only Aaron’s rod - had sprouted. It not only sprouted, it had put forth buds. It had not only put forth buds, it had produced blossoms. It had not only produced blossoms, it had yielded almonds. It had not only yielded almonds, it yielded ripe almonds! This was a place where you would think a miracle would have been convincing enough. After all, God could have merely made a little green sprout come forth from Aaron’s rod alone, and that would have, or should have been enough.

But God gave, as in the words of Acts 1:3, many infallible proofs, to demonstrate His approval of Aaron’s leadership.

God gives us more than enough evidence; our problem is a lack of willingness to see what He has made clear. The whole test meant Aaron was God’s chosen priest, and the nation was required to recognize it. And notice the last phrase in verse 9, that each man took his rod: This was a dramatic scene. Each murmurer from the different tribe took his rod, and clearly saw that his had not budded or borne fruit, and that Aaron’s had. Therefore, as a symbol and sign of their rebellion notice what we read in verses 10-11.

NUM 17:10-11, But the Lord said to Moses, “Put back the rod of Aaron before the testimony to be kept as a sign against the rebels, that you may put an end to their grumblings against Me, so that they should not die.” Thus Moses did; just as the Lord had commanded him, so he did.

Notice in verse 10, that Aaron’s rod was be kept as a sign against the rebels: The rod of Aaron was to be kept as a museum piece, to remind the children of Israel that God had chosen a priesthood, and nothing would change that. Aaron’s priesthood would always be Aaron’s priesthood. The phrase to bring Aaron’s rod back before the Testimony means that Aaron’s rod was to be kept in the ark of the covenant, as another example of Israel’s failure and rebellion. And so when God looked down from heaven into the ark, He saw emblems of Israel’s sin: The tablets of the Law they broke, the manna they complained about, and Aaron’s rod that they rebelled against.

All three items were designed to illustrate the wickedness of man but how it is about to be solved by the mercy of God. In the spiritual realm, this was all covered paid for and fulfilled when our Lord fulfilled the third prophecy mentioned in DAN 9:24...” to make atonement for iniquity.”

Inside of the ark our Lord atoned for or paid the price for the sin of rebellion which is such a very serious sin that the prophet Samuel wrote in 1SA 15:23, “For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, And insubordination is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He has also rejected you from being king.”

And so we have noted the Jews and their rejection of the Ten Commandments in the past. And then we just looked at the teaching of Aaron’s rod that budded. Now, let’s take a look at why the urn of manna was placed inside of the ark as a sign of the Jews rebellion against the provisions of God. We can learn something about this beginning in

EXO 16:1-4, Then they set out from Elim, and all the congregation of the sons of Israel came to the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after their departure from the land of Egypt. And the whole congregation of the sons of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. And the sons of Israel said to them, “Would that we had died by the Lord’s hand in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the pots of meat, when we ate bread to the full; for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.” Then the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day, that I may test them, whether or not they will walk in My instruction.”

Now God called this bread lechem meaning food or bread. However, that it wasn’t they called it.

They called it manhu meaning: What is it? And then they finally called it manna. The manna was logistical grace provisions from God. It was God making sure that the Jews would be provided everything that they would need to sustain their life. Furthermore, manna was a challenge to the daily function of the faith-rest drill, for God had specified definite requirements which are equivalent to a challenge of positive volition toward the word of God.

In other words, the Lord not only gave them the manna, but he also gave them instructions to follow concerning the manna. And if they did not follow these instructions properly, then the manna would not benefit them at all. In fact, just the opposite, the manna would become a snare to them, it bred worms. Here again, we have the importance of following the Lord’s directions or doing a right thing in a right way. This is the whole principle behind God’s plan for the Church-age believer...which is what we call the Pre-designed Plan of God (PPOG). The PPOG is a strict system of procedure based upon the accurate teaching of the word of God. It is based upon the very simple statement that a right thing must be done in a right way! It must be precise and correct in its’ procedure. There is nothing sloppy in the procedure of the Christian way of life.

With the introduction of human power and energy of the flesh function, sloppiness occurs. Therefore God has developed, in His grace, a system which is totally impossible for human power to live in. In fact it frustrates human power constantly. So the children of Israel followed their own plans concerning the provisions of God. Instead gathering the manna daily, they tried to gather more than they needed and the manna ended up becoming spoiled.

As far as the manna was concerned, first of all you had to learn and get to know the doctrine, and then you had to believe it. And then once you believe it, then you have the availability of the faith-rest life.

So God provided the perfect food for them every day. Every day except one, food was provided. Sunday - Friday, every morning food was provided for the rebellious children of Israel. And they had to gather every day, just enough for one day only. On Friday morning, they gathered a double portion because Saturday was the Sabbath and they were told to rest and eat the double portion that God gave them on Friday to sustain them for Saturday only. However, they became greedy and gathered up too much every day and the manna became spoiled and tasted rotten and was filled with maggots and worms. And so they ended naturally complaining once again.

So on Friday the Jews had a test to use the faith rest drill and trust God to provide but they failed. You see, God had a system, and you had to know the system. You had to do it God’s way! You couldn’t gather a double portion whenever you wanted to! You had to do it God’s way. And if you went out on the Sabbath day and looked for something to eat because you refused to gather a double portion on Friday...there would be nothing there. Why?-You had to do it God’s way. And so an urn of manna was placed inside the ark symbolizing the Jews and their murmurings and complaints and their ungratefulness and implacability and TLJC atoned for that as well!

EXO 16:4, Then the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day, that I may test them, whether or not they will walk in My instruction.”

The test was to see whether or not they would follow the Lord’s directions and do things “His way.” They would have to gather a double portion on Friday or else they would have nothing to eat on the Sabbath. In other words, there would be one day a week in which they would have to rely on what they had gathered previously. And this required faith. Now this was all very simple to those who lived by doctrine, but not simple to those who lived by their emotions. And their attitude was their real problem for in EXO 16:2-4, And the whole congregation of the sons of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. And the sons of Israel said to them, “Would that we had died by the Lord’s hand in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the pots of meat, when we ate bread to the full; for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.” Then the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day, that I may test them, whether or not they will walk in My instruction.”

The reason that the Lord did this is because they are complaining again...they are dissatisfied and they are expressing it. And notice the word walk. It says that I may test them, whether or not they will walk in My instruction. Walking is a daily thing! And doctrine is a daily thing. It isn’t something you do once and a while. It is a daily thing. And notice that he tested them to see whether they would walk in his instruction...daily! This is where they would get their spiritual strength to get their problem solving devices. Walking in instruction daily.

EPH 5:15-16, Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men, but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil. so then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.

So we are to walk in the plan of God and in the will of God, walking is analogous to life in the PPOG.

1JO 1:6-7, If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; But if we walk in the light as he himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.

1JO 2:6, The one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked.

2JO 1:6, And this is love, that we walk according to His commandments. This is the commandment, just as you have heard from the beginning, that you should walk in it.


3JO 1:3-4, For I was very glad when brethren came and bore witness to your truth, that is, how you are walking in truth. I have no greater joy than this, to hear of my children walking in the truth.

Notice in all of these passages that walking and truth are mentioned. The two go together and for us in application, walking refers to walking in the PPOG. This is why we have different commands to walk throughout the New Testament.

ROM 6:4 Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, in order that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.

Notice it says that as Christ was raised from the dead. And how was Christ raised from the dead?

Through the power of God. Therefore the last part of this verse says “so we too might walk in this newness of life.”

The same power that raised the Lord from the dead is the same power that we are to walk in....which is the power of God.

GAL 5:16, But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.

GAL 5:25, If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.

GAL 6:16, And those who will walk by this rule, peace and mercy be upon them,

EPH 2:10, For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

EPH 4:1, I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, entreat you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called,

EPH 5:8, For you were formerly darkness, but now you are light in the Lord; walk as children of light

COL 1:10, So that you may walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God;

COL 2:6, As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him,

1TH 2:12 So that you may walk in a manner worthy of the God who calls you into His own kingdom and glory.


1TH 4:1, Finally then, brethren, we request and exhort you in the Lord Jesus, that, as you received from us instruction as to how you ought to walk and please God (just as you actually do walk), that you may excel still more.

Please notice that in all of these verses walking a certain way is mentioned. And you should be concerned with that certain way. If not, when a problem or a disaster comes, you will be spiritually weak and freak out and not faith-rest.

EXO 16:5, “And it will come about on the sixth day [Friday], when they prepare what they bring in, it will be twice as much as they gather daily.”

Note that if the manna was kept overnight, it spoiled. They did not listen to Moses, what’s new? And some left part of it until morning, In other words, they got greedy and filled their tents with the manna, and in the morning they had the biggest mess you could imagine. Maggots all over the place. And it bred worms, or as the Hebrew says...it was filled with maggots. And became foul; or it really began to stink. And so this is why an urn of manna was placed inside the ark and falls under the doctrine of atoning iniquities because one of the worse sins a believer can commit is being ungrateful, implacable, followed by murmuring and complaining to the man of God (in this cases Moses), and then God Himself. As the Lord said to Samuel in 1SA 8:7b, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me.

The following link is to a good news message describing how one can receive eternal life:
Ticket to Heaven, it was written for anyone not absolutely certain about their eternal future.