The popular christian view of the future, from all I read and heard, is that we get a ticket to heaven and will sit on the clouds playing a harp, or as has been said "Pie in the sky when you die". I searched the Bible. The future foretold is of the nation of Israel being restored and of the people of Israel once again ‘Following The Maker’s Instructions‘ as they were always meant to. And after Israel is restored, then all the earth will experience a happy ending as Israel fulfils their role and place.
The second chapter of Daniel in the Bible contains one of the most interesting and 'simple' tools to measure where we are in The Maker's time scale. The consecutive empires which temporarily ‘replace’ Israel during the exile punishment are pictured as parts of a statue. Babylon the head, Medo-Persia the shoulders, Greece the waist, Rome the legs, and then one final empire: The feet of iron and clay. Universally the feet and toes were interpreted by western christians as a revived Roman empire, usually seen in a 1984 New World Order conspiracy kind of way. This Elitist conspiracy theory is considered ‘global’ as understood today, rather than the ‘global’ of the previous four empires which were all middle-eastern. It chokes out any expectation of an earthly out-come worth waiting for. I accepted this as certain for 23 years. About 5 years ago I saw an alternative understanding which actually fits history, instead of the revived Rome interpretation which leaves a 1300 year gap to be somehow explained. Islam replaced the Eastern Roman empire over the land of Israel and therefore it is the ‘feet and toes’, or last empire before Israel, both houses (not just the Jewish part!) is restored to how it was under King David. This is the desired Happy Ending we have all been waiting for. “Your Kingdom come, your will be done on EARTH” makes sense at last.
Many people are stirred up about Israel's restoration and many pray for it. However they for the most part don't imagine for one minute that they are meant to be grafted into the nation of Israel. This is the thing Yeshua and his followers went around calling people to. He didn’t talk about his death and resurrection. The good news was that the time of rejection was over. Not because we had turned round enough but “for His name’s sake”. Yet most people think they have heard the gospel. Now is the time to call people back to following The Maker’s Instructions and to become UNSETTLED where they live, in readiness for the greater Second Exodus. This is the harvest gathering back to the land of Israel where we will be, once again, His people and He will be with us.
Passover is about Israel’s exodus from Egypt, Yeshua redeeming us from being slaves to sin with powerful forgiveness, AND in the near future He will rescue His people from exile, bringing them back to their home land.
I know all this. I’ve seen all this. Yet the challenge for me is to allow the truth of His love to change me from being the traumatised child, one able to see things as an outsider but unable to fit in, into being an adopted son able to face the troubles that are coming as part of the nation being ingathered.
As the plagues are repeated on a much bigger scale in prelude to the Second Exodus, we will see much trouble. Who among us will prove to be trusting children? This refining process will end with a worthy people fit to serve The Most High as a light to the other nations left after our ingathering.
How then shall we live?
