THE LORD SPOKE (November 27)

Daily Reflections from Scripture:

Ezekiel 46-48

Here’s a hot fishing tip for the Millennium! Get yourself a spot on the NW shore of the Dead Sea.

Ezekiel describes a miraculous river which flows out of Jerusalem, coming from under the threshold of the Temple (47:1). As it flows east it cuts to the south side of the altar and exits the Temple compound south of the closed eastern gate (47:2). After 1500' it is flowing at a depth of 4-5 inches. Without tributaries, the flow increases dramatically as it drops. By 3000' it’s already 20" deep; by 4500' it’s up to 40"; and by 6000' it’s too deep to wade across anymore. The drop in elevation from Jerusalem is dramatic, about 3700' in 15 miles.

Today the course of this river would take it through a barren wasteland for the most part. Except for a some seasonal watercourses and a few small springs, there is little water to be found in the Judean Desert and vegetation is scarce, found in small pockets near the water. But Ezekiel’s river is bordered by “a great number of trees” (47:7). They will be plentiful and will produce a variety of fruit and medicine throughout the year (47:12).

The water of the Dead Sea will “become fresh” whenever it comes in contact with the crystal flow. Today the salt and mineral content of the Dead Sea is such that nothing lives in its waters. But this miraculous stream will heal the salty waters. En Gedi (“spring of the goat”) is a well known oasis on the west shore but En-Eglaim (“spring of the two calves”) is unknown. Its probable location is somewhere on the east shore, such that the whole north end of the lake will become fresh water while the south end (“the swamps and marshes” of vs. 11) will remain salty. P.S. Salt will be needed for the sacrifices at the Temple (43:24).

This river was “seen” by several others in Scripture:

• David in Psalm 36:8 - “your river of delights”
• the sons of Korah in Psalm 46:4 - “there is a river whose streams make glad the city of God”
• Joel in 3:18 - “a fountain will flow out of the Lord’s house and will water the Valley of Acacias”
• Zechariah in 13:1 & 14:8 - “living water will flow out from Jerusalem...the river of the water of life”

Now compare this river with John’s vision of the New Jerusalem in Revelation 21-22. He describes a river there which,

Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. (Rev. 22:1-2)

Beautiful to imagine! Hard to wait to see it, huh?


Psalms 143-144

...My soul thirsts for you like a parched land. (Ps. 143:6)

Frequently in Scripture, the analogy that is used to express our longing for God is that of thirst. Living, as he did, and tending his flocks in the barren Judean wilderness, David knew something of parched land. No doubt there were many times he longed for some refreshing stream in the baked countryside.

When David brought together the various psalms to compose the Psalter, the first one he chose for Book II was from the sons of Korah and begins with these words: “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. Where can I go and meet with God?” (Ps. 42:1-2)

David himself wrote: “O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water.” (Ps. 63:1)

The prophets often picked up on the same theme. Isaiah said: “They will neither hunger nor thirst, nor will the desert heat or the sun beat upon them. He who has compassion on them will guide them and lead them beside springs of water.” (Is. 49:10) and “Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters...” (Is. 55:1).

Jesus completed that invitation when He said: “Whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst.... He who believes in me will never be thirsty.... If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.” (Jn. 4:14; 6:35; 7:37-38)

The promise is repeated with great joy by the hosts of heaven in Revelation 7:15-17 where it says, “never again will they thirst...for the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water.”

All my life-long I had panted
For a drink from some clear spring,
That I hoped would quench the burning
Of the thirst I felt within.

Hallelujah! I have found Him
Whom my soul so long has craved!
Jesus satisfies my longings,
Through His blood I now am saved.

Poor I was, and sought for riches,
Something that would satisfy,
But the dust I gathered round me
Only mocked my soul’s sad cry.

Well of water, ever springing,
Bread of life so rich and free,
Untold wealth that never faileth,
My Redeemer is to me. (Clara T. Williams)

THE LORD SPOKE (November 24)

Daily Reflections from Scripture:

Ezekiel 40-41

The millennial temple. No, it’s the Millennial Temple. This was not just another building that Ezekiel was describing. It will be a magnificent structure that all the saints of the Old Testament will see and experience!

The Bible doesn’t tell us specifically when those saints will be resurrected. Some place it at the end of time, relating it to the destruction of the earth by fire and its restoration in the New Heavens and New Earth. They will populate eternity. That’s possible but their resurrection before the millennium makes better sense. Otherwise, they miss out on all the promises of the Old Testament - promises made to them. The promise of their return to the Land, of the restoration of that Land, of a kingdom, of David back on his throne in Jerusalem, of the Messiah present and governing that kingdom, of life the way it was meant to be under God’s sovereign rule.

So when Ezekiel describes that future Temple, he has stars in his eyes. Though it has many similarities with the Temple of Solomon from Ezekiel’s time, it is more magnificent by far in dimensions. In fact, it won’t fit topographically on Jerusalem’s historic hills and valleys. Mount Moriah, the “Temple Mount”, won’t contain it. But that’s not a problem because Isaiah has already told us that “every valley shall be exalted and the mountains made low” (Is. 40:4) so the necessary space will be there.

Does a Temple and sacrifices in Jerusalem during the millennium bother you? If we understand properly what they meant and what they accomplished we will better understand what they will mean and their purpose in the future Temple. The writer of Hebrews tells us that “it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins” (Heb. 10:4). Though they were God’s solution for the sin problem at the time, those sacrifices looked forward to the Lamb of God that would “take away the sins of the world” (Jn. 1:29).

The sacrifices of the Old Testament looked forward to the efficient Sacrifice that would be the only sufficient solution to the sin problem. Just as our New Testament communion service looks back to that same Sacrifice as a symbolic memorial, so too will the sacrifices during the millennium point to the One and only solution for sin.

If the Old Testament saints are, in fact, resurrected before the millennium you may be sure that every one of them will make every effort to see that magnificent Temple that Ezekiel saw only in vision. Will we be there? If you know Christ as your personal savior today you will return with Him as the army dressed in white linen described in Revelation 19:14. That will be in time for the 1000-year reign (Rev. 20:1-6) so, yes, you may expect to see that Temple too.


Psalms 137-138

“You can take the boy out of the mountains, but you can’t take the mountains out of the boy.”

That’s about the closest parallel to what is found here in Psalm 137. Deep in the heart of every Jewish person is a longing for Jerusalem. The love of Zion was a dull ache for centuries. The seventy-year captivity in Babylon, which provides the context for this psalm, was protracted since the Roman destruction of Jerusalem in the year 70 AD. For nearly 2000 years, Jews the world over “sang the songs of Zion” and hoped for her restoration and their restoration to her.

Things began to change in the late 1800's. Though there had always been a Jewish presence in Jerusalem (usually a majority!), there were times when it wasn’t much more than a sleepy village languishing in the backwaters. The arrival of many Europeans with thoughts of empire expansion brought swift change to Jerusalem, and culminated in the First World War. First the railroad and then a paved road linked her to the coast and the rest of the world. Early on, Bible-believers beat a pilgrim’s path to her gates. The “London Society for the Propagation of Christianity Amongst the Jews” held on to the belief that the Jews would one day return to the Land, even when such a belief wasn’t very popular. Major change came with the advent of modern Zionism.

David Ben-Gurion tenaciously held on to Jerusalem even when it wasn’t militarily the best decision. When the dust settled after Israel’s War of Independence in 1948, she held west Jerusalem but not the Old City. “Reunification” didn’t come until 19 years later. The Six-Day War in 1967 once again gave Jews access to all of Jerusalem, “never to leave again”.

If I forget you, O Jerusalem,
may my right hand forget its skill.
May my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth
if I do not remember you,
if I do not consider Jerusalem my highest joy.
Psalm 137:5-6

Nowhere in Scripture does it say, “If I forget thee, O New York... or O Paris... or O Tokyo.” But it does say, “If I forget thee, O Jerusalem....” The city of God’s delight and choosing has held a place in the heart of every Bible-believer since he first read of David’s conquest of the city. Jerusalem is not only the object of our historical attention, it is the dream of our eschatological longing. It’s where Jesus died and rose again, leaving an empty tomb! But it’s also where all the nations of the earth will go up to honor Him. It’s where we will see Him, once again upon this earth.

There is no forgetting Jerusalem!

THE LORD SPOKE (September 14)

Daily Reflections from Scripture:

Old Testament: Ecclesiastes 4-6

You probably won’t have more than one at a time. And you may go through long dry spells when you won’t have even one. But it should be your objective to find that one. Chances are, it will be your mate. In fact, once you have a mate, it will be complicated to have another one of these. A close friend.

Even Jesus had a special friend among many friends. Besides the seventy, he had twelve who were especially close to him. He spent more time and had more intimate contact with three of those twelve but, even then, there was one who was known as “the disciple whom Jesus loved”. We can do no better. It’s okay to have several, even many, friends. But it’s essential to have one special friend upon whom we can lean. By the way, we also need to have someone lean on us too. Both to lean on us for our correction and to lean on us for our support. We need that. It’s as important to give as it is to take in a genuine friendship.

In all probability, that one special friend will be the mate God gives you. In most cases it would be difficult to have a mate and another special friend who is equally close. We’re just not made that way - either to divide our intimate attention between two or to allow our best friend to have another best friend. That’s a contradiction in terms. Best no longer means best if there is more than one object.

One of the main reasons for having a best friend is explained in our reading today:

Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up! Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord or three strands is not quickly broken. Ecclesiastes 4:9-12

When one is down, the other can pick him up. Tomorrow, the reverse may be true. One’s strengths compliment those of the other. A genuine friend knows when to talk to you and when to shut up. A genuine friend knows what you need to hear and how to get you to listen, even when you don’t really want to hear it. A genuine friend doesn’t give up on you. Even when you blow up, he keeps on listening. He loves you enough to confront you. “Faithful are the wounds of a friend” (Prov. 27:6, KJV - the NIV says they “can be trusted”).

Take a look at the missionary teams formed in the Book of Acts. Sometimes they’re larger or smaller but they usually include three main components:

• a Paul - the dynamic leader, up front, speaking out, making mistakes, forging ahead
• a Barnabas - the grey-haired counselor, encouraging, calming down, correcting mistakes
• a Timothy - the young disciple, learning by observing, making his own mistakes

Together, they make an unbeatable team. In fact, they rub off on others who do more of the same (II Timothy 2:2). Even 2000 years later.


New Testament: Revelation 20

If something is said once in the Bible, that surely settles it. But if it’s repeated six times, should we not sit up and take notice? So how, pray tell, can an amillennialist look God in the eye and say there’s no such thing as a Millennium?

Nothing could be more clear or more absolute from Revelation 20 than the truth of a 1000-year period during which:

Rev. 20:2 - Satan will be bound
Rev. 20:3 - the nations will be freed from his deceit
Rev. 20:4 - Jesus Christ will reign
Rev. 20:6 - those resurrected beforehand will reign with Him

and after which:

Rev. 20:5 - many other saints will be resurrected
Rev. 20:7 - Satan will be released for a short time (c.f. Rev. 20:3)

So, how can an amillennialist deny that? Only by resorting to a non-literal interpretation. Only by ignoring the prophecies of Isaiah. And Zechariah. And Daniel. And a host of other passages of Scripture. Only by denying the biblical distinction between Israel and the Church. How else can all those prophecies regarding Israel’s future kingdom be ripped out of their context and misapplied to the Church? By spiritualizing, allegorizing, and mythologizing you can make them say anything you want.

But the fact is, they say “one thousand years”. And they say it emphatically.

By the end of the chapter, an awesome crescendo rises before a great white throne. The very earth and sky flee away. Myriads stand before the throne as the Book of Life is opened. The righteous Judge of all creation has the last word. The curse will have run its course and everything is new thereafter. The end of time has come.

When all my labors and trials are o’er,
And I am safe on that beautiful shore,
Just to be near the dear Lord I adore,
Will through the ages be glory for me.

O that will be glory for me,
Glory for me, glory for me,
When by His grace I shall look on His face,
That will be glory, be glory for me.

When, by the gift of His infinite grace,
I am accorded in heaven a place,
Just to be there and to look on His face,
Will through the ages be glory for me.