Text Box: Publish Monthly by 
Pilgrim’s Bible Church
Timothy Fellows Pastor
VOL. XVIII No. 7
October, 1991
 

Featured Articles

The Jews-- Part 3

Russian Bible Society

"Why does the Fed need babies dead?"-- Socialism

THE JEWS: THEIR

IDENTITY AND THEIR

CURSE - Part III

Text: "He is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh: but he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God." (Romans 2:28.29)

DO We Have the Right to Indiscriminately Allegorize the Word of God?

A pastor recently wrote charging me with being a "futurist." I responded that it is the very nature of prophecy to be "futuristic." Even the preterist who thinks all Bible prophecy was fulfilled in the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD must confess the prophecies of Isaiah, Jeremiah, and the writings of all the prophets were futuristic. This is the nature of prophecy.

Consider first that it is all too obvious that the Jews, consisting of the 12 tribes of Israel, did not lose their identity in Babylon as some contend. If they had, the identification by tribes of many Jews in the New Testament would not be possible.

Second, the writings of the Apostle John, the last of the Twelve, are unquestionably written in the early 90’s of the First Century. Since the 12 tribes are mentioned in the book of Revelation, it is necessary for preterists to give the book an early date.

A QUESTION

Let me pose a question. "When the Scriptures contradict our opinion, are we to allegorize, or otherwise change the Word of God, or are we to change our opinion? There are but two options open to us. Are we supposed to allegorize all Scripture that conflicts with our views or are we supposed to alter out views and to bring them in line with what the Scriptures say? In short, "Do we have the right to indiscriminately allegorize Word of God?"

Unfulfilled Prophecy

It is apparent some prophecies are yet to be fulfilled. For instance, the sea has not delivered up the dead which are in t; neither has death and Hell been cast into the Lake of Fire. (Rev. 20:13,14)

One has recently written a book JESUS HAS RETURNED. Like Hymenaeus and Philetus who in the first century taught the resurrection was past so today there are some who would overthrow the faith of others. (II Tim. 2:18) Jesus Christ has not returned. The prophet Zechariah declares that when He does return, the Mount of Olives will quake and cleave. (Zech 14:4) The great Euphrates River has not yet dried up to make way for the kings of the East. (Rev. 16:12)

Literalism and Dispensationalism

The Scriptures are to be understood literally. There is a literal Devil, and a literal coming of The Man of Sin. This is the reason I cannot in good conscience accept dispensational teaching that teaches the Church is but a parenthetical thought with God, and therefore only a passing concern –that God is primarily concerned with the Jews. And, for the life of me I cannot believe that as soon as the Holy Spirit is taken out of the way, then real evangelism will get under way.

In good conscience I cannot allegorize the Word of God to fit the hermeneutic of dispensationalism; but I am not about to exchange it for the Amillennial or Preterist position that requires at least as much juggling and allegorizing of Scripture.

The Jews: And Their Rejection of the Messiah (Christ)

Moses, writing by Divine inspiration declared "The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet until Shiloh come: and unto Him shall the gathering of the people be" (Gen. 49:10) Either there is a king in Judah this day or "Shiloh" -- "He who is to come" has come.

The Prophet Isaiah speaking as the Holy Spirit gave him utterance said, "Therefore the Lord Himself shall give you a sign; ‘Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name, Immanuel.’" (7:14) Either the royal throne in Jerusalem is occupied by David’s seed, or the virgin prophecied has conceived and delivered her son "Immanuel."

THE JEWS and THEIR CURSE

Text: "Then answered all the people and said, ‘His blood be on us and on our children..."’ (Matt. 27:25)

One of the greatest proofs of the truth of Christianity and of the innocence of Christ is the curse inflicted upon the Jews. It was a self-inflicted curse for when the people shouted "His blood be upon us and upon our children," they brought the curse upon themselves. They pronounced it with their lips and God answered, "So be it;" and He has afflicted them with judgments without equal in the history of nations.

No other nation has been subjected to such continued displays of Divine Judgment. The Jews have indeed become a hissing and a by-word. There is perhaps no greater proof of the truth of Christianity, and the justice of God in justifying Christ than the curse by which He continues to afflict the Jews.

The Roman Period

In 38 AD at Alexandria in Egypt, Caligula inflicted a frightful massacre upon the Jews because they refused to worship him.

Appian questioned how Jews could be citizens of Alexandria when they repudiated the gods of the city. He thus charged them with ritual murder, an outrage with which early Christians were also charged.

Seneca charged them with congenital idleness because they refused to labor on the Sabbath.

The Fall of Jerusalem

In 66 AD, Jewish zealots rebelled against the Roman government. The Romans responded by capturing Jerusalem in 70 AD. Vespasian left his son in charge of the siege while he marched on Rome to quell anarchy, and to take control of the government

It is known that 1,100,000 Jews perished during the siege, and according to records, 1,357,660 perished during the war. Scores of thousands more were never recorded.

Josephus totals the captives taken in the war at 97,000. Those 17 years of age and older were sent to Egypt to be destroyed in arenas by animals or by the sword. Those younger were sold as slaves. In one place, 11,000 died by starvation; and Titus butchered 2500 at Caesarea to celebrate his brother’s birthday.

Occupational Forces

From 70 A.D. until 1917, a period of 1847 years, Jerusalem was under the control of occupational forces, and not of the Jews. The city was first under the control of the Romans, then of the Saracens. During the time of the crusades, it was under the control of the Franks (the French), then of the Marmelukes of Egypt. Finally it was under the control of the Turks.

The Medieval Period

During the Middle Ages, Jews were commonly labeled "Christ killers," and their very presence was thought to be the cause of the Bubonic Plague --the "Black Death."

In 1290, England banished them. In 1306, they were exiled from France. In the 14th and 15th centuries, they were banished from Germany, Austria and from Spain. Interestingly enough, the Jews received better treatment in Spain when that land was under the control of the Islamic Moors, than by Roman Catholic "Christians."

From 1648-1658, Poland tried to murder the Jews within her borders. This time is known in her history as "The Bloody Decade."

Modern Times

England did not respect the rights of Jews until the 1800’s. They were first admitted to Parliament in 1858, but not until 1885 were they admitted to the House of Lords.

France, under Napoleon, in 1806 recognized Jews as citizens. Denmark did so in 1814. Norway banished them until 1860. In Russia, Jews were crowded into the Pale, and as recent as 1892, they were ordered out of the country. Famine and cholera plagued the land of the Czar. The banishment of the Jews in such times wrought greater suffering than what they had suffered during the Middle Ages. It was not until 1948 that Russia acknowledged their full and natural rights.

"His Blood Be Upon Us and On Our Children"

The blood of Christ did not come as a curse upon all Jews. On some the blood of Christ came in salvation, God is often better to us and to our children than we are.

John Duncan was the first missionary to the Jews sent out by the Church of Scotland. One day he lovingly spoke to a Viennese Jew who was among workman laboring on the construction of a bridge over the Danube, The man was Alfred Edersheim who later wrote The Life and Times of Jesus The Messiah.

Felix Mendelssohn was a converted Jew who sided with the Reformed faith. And, there are others of note throughout history who were saved by the blood of Christ; nevertheless, the curse continues upon the Jewish people, and it will until such time when they "shall look upon Him whom they have pierced." (Zech. 12:10)

"Hath God cast away His people" which He foreknew? "God forbid." (Rom. 11:1) However, James Jordan is correct when he writes, "Christian Zionism is blasphemy. It is heresy. Christians have no theological stake whatsoever in the modern State of Israel. It is an anti-God, anti-Christ nation. Until it repents and says, "blessed is He Who comes in the Name of the Lord," it will continue to be under the wrath of God. The modern State of Israel permits the persecution of Christians and Christian missionaries. We must pray that God will change the hearts of Jews, as of all other pagans, to receive Christ. But to support the enemies of the Gospel is not the mark of a Gospel minister, but of an anti-Christ." (The Sociology of the Church, p. 184, Geneva Ministries, 1986)

 GOD HATH SPOKEN - "This book could make a serious atheist re-think his position. Fellows shows that the ancient people had scientific knowledge of biology, astronomy, etc. that they could have received only from God directly. Send 5 bux." --Dave Wilber

THE RUSSIAN BIBLE SOCIETY

We heartily recommend Bob Doom, Pastor of the Grace Fellowship Baptist Church in Asheville, No. Carolina, and who heads the oldest mission to Russia, The Russian Bible Society.

Pastor Doom is a committed Calvinist who is diligently laboring to bring the Word of God to the Russian people. Unlike so many Bible publishers, he is committed to the Received Text from which the Authorized Version was translated.

He writes, "... Letters come to us daily at the rate of 150 each month. They come from every republic of the USSR," asking for Bibles. "We must use the present opportunity to meet all the requests.

"It is the hand of God that has opened wide the door for us to provide God’s Word for the 284 million souls that desperately need Bibles, the message of salvation, strength and comfort. We are committed to making full use of the door. However, we do need support to send Bible’s, children’s books, New Testaments, and tracts.

"Your gift of $10 will pay for packaging and mailing one Bible. A gift of $7.50 will pay for packaging and mailing a Children’s Book, two New Testaments, and four tracts. If you include a return address label, we will stick it on a package and send it in your name.

"If you prefer the hands-on method of mailing the packages we will bring them or send them to your church via UPS. The packages are ready to mail and need only the postage and a return address. The cost is $5.00 per package plus cost of UPS, if we send them to you.

Write: The Russian Bible Society, Box 6068, Asheville, NC.

Pastor Doom also heads the Global Baptist Missions which sends missionaries into a dozen countries.

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Why does the Fed need babies dead? For the same reason it needs retirees dead, as well as the sick, and the elderly: they are non-productive consumers. Can there be a better way to enhance the ratio of

production to consumption than to eliminate non-productive consumers? This is the fruit of socialism.

For documentation and a tape cassette of 2 radio talk shows on a suppressed cancer cure, send 4 bux to: Awake America, Box 22431, St. Louis, Mo. 63126.

NOTE: "I readily and I trust feelingly acknowledge the duty incumbent on us all as men and citizens and as among the highest and holiest of our duties to provide for those who in the mysterious order of Providence, are subject to want and to disease of body or mind; but I cannot find any authority in the Constitution for making the Federal Government the great almoner of public charity throughout the United States.... It would in the end be prejudicial rather than beneficial in the noble offices of charity..." Franklin Pierce, Veto Message, 1854

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