I hate the word "Easter" and I heard it way too much yesterday. I know most Christians are completely unaware of the meaning of that word and the horrible pagan practices revolving around this goddess Ishtar or Asherah. If you want to know, there's plenty of articles online for you to find. Besides, this pagan holiday rarely falls on Nisan 17, which is the actual day in history our Lord rose from the dead. However, as I was pondering this yesterday morning during my time with the Lord, He reminded me that even though I don't necessarily celebrate this holiday with my family and friends, I actually celebrate His resurrection every day when I thank Him for all He's done and I worship Him in Spirit and in truth! So, essentially, every day we celebrate Jesus's resurrection!
This past week as I reflected on our Lord's suffering, my heart broke at the realization of all He endured. The Bible says that He was tortured so severely that He didn't even look human anymore. Think about that. The flogging on His back AND chest tore off His skin and shredded his muscles. His beard was plucked out. He was punched so hard in the face, it was swollen beyond recognition. His hair was matted in blood from the crown of thorns. And all that was BEFORE He was nailed to the Cross. Just think about what that hard splintery wood felt like on his skinless back. As He hung there, He couldn't breathe, so He kept having to push Himself up from His nail embedded feet just to get a quick breath. Every one of his organs was failing. Think about the pain of that! Along with everything else. And when they tried to give him some gall for the pain, He refused!! ALL the Sins of every human who had ever lived and would live fell upon Him. So it wasn't just the physical pain and torture, but the Spiritual devastation. Every one of His friends and companions, except John, had deserted Him in his hour of need. Talk about rejection! And He was mocked, insulted, spit upon by all around Him.
But I am a worm, and no man; A reproach of men, and despised by the people. All those who see Me ridicule Me;
They shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying,
“He trusted in the Lord, let Him rescue Him;
Let Him deliver Him, since He delights in Him!” Psalm 22:6-8
Not just humans, either. All the demons in hell, and most likely Satan himself were there, mocking, hissing, laughing
Many bulls have surrounded Me;
Strong bulls of Bashan have encircled Me.
They gape at Me with their mouths,
Like a raging and roaring lion. Psalm 22:12-13
But that wasn't even the worst of it! When that last sin of mankind fell upon Jesus, the Father left Him. He had to. God could not be present with so much sin. And for the first time EVER , Jesus was alone, completely alone without the Father. This was the final rejection that broke His heart.
My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?
Why are You so far from helping Me,
And from the words of My groaning? Psalm 22:1
BUT, Three days later, those same demons and satan, himself, found out how they'd been tricked. They found out that they had been defeated once and for all when the Son of God sat up, removed His grave clothes, and walked out of that tomb!
If He had not done that, we would be lost and without hope in this world. We'd have nothing to look forward to but old age, sickness, death, and hell. Sometimes I think we Christians take all this for granted. We don't truly grasp what Jesus has done for us.
Just as Jesus rose from the grave that day, All those who have died trusting in Him will do the same one day VERY soon. When we think about the rapture, we normally just think about us hearing a trumpet and being escorted up to the clouds. But every true Christian still in the grave will also rise! Think about the power required for that.
We know there was an Earthquake at the time Jesus rose. In fact, often in Scripture, we see earthquakes happening alongside a huge burst of God's power. See the following Scriptures!
Jesus's Resurrection
And behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat on it. Matthew 28:2
End of the Tribulation
I looked when He opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became like blood. Revelation 6:12
Paul and Silas released from prison
Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the very foundations of the prison were shaken; and at once all the doors were opened and everyone’s shackles were unfastened. Acts 16:26
Prelude to the seven trumpets
Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and threw it to the earth. And there were noises, thunderings, lightnings, and an earthquake. Revelation 8:5
The Two Witnesses Resurrected and Raptured
And they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here.” And they ascended to heaven in a cloud, and their enemies saw them. In the same hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell. In the earthquake seven thousand people were killed, and the rest were afraid and gave glory to the God of heaven. Revelation 11:12-14
Right before the final bowls of wrath are poured out
Then the temple of God was opened in heaven, and the ark of His covenant was seen in His temple. And there were lightnings, noises, thunderings, an earthquake, and great hail. Revelation 11:19
The 7th and final bowl of wrath poured out
And there were noises and thunderings and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such a mighty and great earthquake as had not occurred since men were on the earth. Revelation 16:18
Will there be an Earthquake during the rapture? I think so! Every grave containing a Christian will burst open, and those who have been cremated or buried at sea, every molecule of their bodies will rise and assemble and be transformed, along with ours, as we all ascend. In fact, Scripture says, the dead in Christ rise first! Then we will all be reunited in the clouds with Jesus in our NEW bodies.
Another thing I don't believe most Christians grasp is how wonderful our eternity will be and what God has planned for us forever! But I'll leave that for another post. I've heard it said that Our BEST day here on Earth will seem like Hell once we get to Heaven, and for those who go to hell, their worst day here will seem like heaven to them. Think about that.
We are leaving soon, Saints. Jesus paid an enormous price for our eternal joy, peace, purpose, and love. If you don't know Him, get on your knees now and repent and give Him your life. If you do, still get on your knees, repent of any sins and thank Him and worship Him. Because no matter what you are going through now, it will all be worth it the second you hear that Trumpet!
Greeting blessed Sister in Christ our Righteous One,
ReplyDeleteWe dont celebrate "Easter" in the traditional sense either. Like you I remember the sacrifice everyday in prayer.
This is very powerful Sister. What you describe about how Jesus suffered is, to me, where our salvation lies.
I always take pause when I hear some tell their story of salvation. How they were Baptized and came up out of the water filled with joy. How the spake in tongues, and prophesied. How wonderful these experiences were. And I agree, our salvation should be something we celebrate with great joy.
Sometimes people will ask, how can I be sure I'm really saved ? I always just tell them my story:
Now I was baptized into Jesus and filled with joy. I was baptized into the Holy Spirit and spake in tongues. But I always had that same question way in back of my mind, am I really saved ?
One day when I was feeling broken, beaten, flogged, scurged and rejected. Not in the physical sense, in in the heart, in my spirit. So in my self pity, I cried out to the Lord. He answered by flooding me with the scene of the betrayal, arrest, the beatings, scourgings, cruelties and to the crucifiction. All the things you describe Sister. All that He suffered for me ! For me ! It was me that put my Lord there ! And I wept in a bitter kind of joy, I wept. That was the moment I was truly saved. When I saw that all Christ endured was because of me and yet for me.
There are 2 scriptures I love about this time period.
Luke 7:…46You did not anoint My head with oil, but she has anointed My feet with perfume. 47Therefore I tell you, because her many sins have been forgiven, she has loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little.”
Matt 12: 38Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to Him, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from You.”
39Jesus replied, “A wicked and adulterous generation demands a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. 40For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
I'll tell you, when I look at the greedy state of the church in these last day's, the fixation on signs and wonders, and when they dont get them they fabricate them. They stomp their feet like little children declaring more spiritual gifts, demanding God to give them power, and heal them, yet they are not healed, they are clouds without rain, twice dead.
And it make me angry, yet they do not realized Christ died, even for them, if they will simply look to the cross and see, Jesus did it all for them.
I not sure I believe one can be truly saved without this knowledge.
Blessings to you Sister for this beautiful revelation of the sufferings of Christ. Let us give thanks, and praise and glory and honor to the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.
Thank you for sharing your story, Joe. I think most of us at one time doubt our salvation. But the fact you had such an emotional reaction to the crucifixion ... well.. that shows a love and worship rarely seen in "church" people today. What more signs to do need except the sign of the Cross. What love He has for us! I have a sense most "christians" will soon find out how empty their religion is. Blessings to you!
DeleteHello, I agree that it is sad that a lot of people believe Easter is an actual dedication of reverence towards the Lord when it is actually based off another “religion.” I could only pray that people would wake up and know what they are really being told in churches since God knows the hearts in terms of who is and who is not sincere in knowing the Lord, even with regular church sessions.
ReplyDeleteBased on your description of the Lord’s torture and crucifixion, isn’t this reflective of the 2004 movie The Passion of the Christ? I never watched it, but I read it focuses on the last 12 hours of Jesus’s life and covered the Last Supper, Juda’s betrayal, the sentencing, the journey to Golgotha, and the Crucifixion and also the Resurrection I believe.
Another movie is the 2010 movie Legion. It has been a long time since I watched it and no spoiler intended assuming you have not seen the movie, but it talks about how God lost all faith in humanity and sends his angels to punish mankind. You will have to see the movie to understand the concept. Long summary short, the movie received negative reviews and it may also be due to the convoluted take on the themes of God, rebellion, and faith. Also I want to point out that it featured a showdown between Michael and Gabriel. Imagine the highest-ranking angel in Heaven standing and battling against God’s Messenger angel Gabriel - what are your thoughts on this kind of plot?
One of the first things I saw on my phone this morning was a news flash that Pope Francis passed. He just met with Vance yesterday on Easter. It is reminding of when the late Queen Elizabeth II shook the hand of a former British Prime Minister and the Queen passed a few days later. Could these be something symbolic about these occurrences?
I remember hearing long ago that the Pope had done things that people thought were unholy and commenters even mentioned the phrase “definitely not a man of God.” There was also debate if he may be the False Prophet, but now that he had passed, people may be wondering who could be the next candidate for the False Prophet. Since the midpoint of the Tribulation is when the False Prophet will perform his intended role of performing wonders in order to enforce people to take the MOB, could it be that there is still time for another potential prospect to assume the title and the abilities to come with it?
Nisan 10, Passover, Palm Sunday, Good Friday, and Easter have passed and we are still looking up for the Rapture - perhaps we should see with May in view of the increasing Middle East tensions leading to potential war and Israel’s 77th anniversary on the 14th, and maybe early June when Pentecost and the Two-State Solution conference take place. This is when we really need to keep our eyes open and be on High Alert. If these come to pass, then it may have to be in the Fall around Rosh Hashanah or Yom Kippur. Since you also mentioned the possibility of a trumpet sounding, could it be possible that following the Rapture and the ensuing chaos, some people may finally deduce what happened and why and come to accept the Lord? Since it would be after the Rapture, does it mean salvation would have to be achieved the extreme way?
Stay strong in Christ and God bless!
I saw The Passion when it first came out and it impacted me greatly. Yet, I believe that even in all the gore, that movie did NOT reveal the true extent of our Savior's suffering. I recommend it if you have the stomach for it. I have not seen Legion, but it doesn't sound Biblical at all. Michael would never battle Gabriel for one thing... I would suggest you stay away from this type of plot.
DeleteRegarding the Pope. I feel sorry for him because he now knows how wrong he was. I did not believe he was the False Prophet, nor do I believe the next pope will be. So, I really have no thoughts on that, except that whomever they choose, he will be evil.
Yes, we are still in a high watch time!! I do not tend to believe the first rapture is in the Fall because that's when the final rapture (the grape harvest) takes place. I still believe Spring/Summer is our time and the time around Pentecost holds great promise. So, keep looking up!
And yes, I do believe many many people who were left behind or just plain lost will see what happened in the rapture and turn to God. The age of Grace will be over, however, and during the Tribulation, everyone who gets saved will have to run for their lives and most will probably be beheaded when they refuse to take the MOB. It is a different time. The Scriptures says that they are saved by "The Word of their Testimony and the Blood of the lamb and they did not love their lives till the death". So it's by their testimony of Jesus and His precious blood,... that they are saved and being willing to die for Him. But it will be much harder to get saved and stay saved during this time. But the Bible tells us that countless thousands upon thousands will be saved! Praise God for that.
Blessings!
Greetings Messenger of God,
ReplyDeleteI feel as long as we show our unending and perpetual gratitude towards the Lord for His suffering and ultimate Resurrection that were meant to show He loved us, it does not matter what “holidays” we celebrate even if they are “meant” for Him.
One passage that you indicated about the Sixth Seal under the subject End of the Tribulation, I always thought the beginning of the Tribulation was when the Fifth Seal is opened revealing all the martyred people from the Tribulation. Does it also mean the Trumpets and Bowls happen chronologically in scattered intervals throughout the seven years, or do they happen in the remaining weeks or months of the Tribulation?
The Rapture is said to save all believers, but would that include the “false” believers such as those who appear holy on the outside, but harbor hate and judgment towards people that they resent for whatever twisted reasons. Would it still be possible for God to be merciful to transform them into saints with pure hearts of gold? Then those who were mistreated by them would be more than willing to welcome them with open arms and call them Brothers or Sisters in Christ.
I recently saw an article about children during the Rapture where three views are held:
1. All children, due to their innocent nature and because they are under the “age of accountability,” which means they are not mature enough to make a willing decision whether to accept or reject Christ, will be raptured along with believers to be with the Lord.
2. Due to the fact that all humans have sinned and no one is sinless regardless of how innocent they may be, the opposite to Number 1 may happen.
3. Only children of true believers will go in the Rapture.
All the views have differing opinions, but which one do you think is most likely to happen?
Keep strong in God for Paradise is coming! Take care and Blessings!
It's my understanding that the Six Seals are a sort of overview of the entire Tribulation... a preview and the 6th one happens at the end. There are Scriptures to prove this, and if you search the Bible for what happens at the 6th seal, you'll see. As far as the Trumpets and Bowls and how things happen, whether chronologically or overlapping is anyone's guess. However, it does seem to me, after much study that most of the Trumpets happen in the 2nd half and the Bowls only occur way at the end during the Days of Awe after the final Day of Atonement.
DeleteOnly true believers with the Holy Spirit inside of them will be taken in the Rapture. False believers, along with some believers who live in willful disobedience and daily sin, will not be going. There may be a chance for them in the middle of the Tribulation to be raptured IF they repent and turn to the Lord. We know we serve a very merciful God, but He is also a judge.
Regarding children, I have no idea. I pray it's number 1 !! But I tend to believe, based on Scripture that number 3 is the most likely.
Blessings to you and yours!