In the Book of Daniel a number of mysteries were encoded. The Lord said, “Only those who are wise will know what it means.” (Dan.12:10) Indeed, only the Spirit-led and discerned can fathom the depth of the God’s revealed mysteries. Some of the hard verses he has been pondering on are as follows:
Daniel 9:26 “After this period of sixty-two sets of seven, the Anointed One will be killed, appearing to have accomplished nothing, and a ruler will arise whose armies will destroy the city and the Temple. The end will come with a flood, and war and its miseries are decreed from that time to the very end. 26 The ruler will make a treaty with the people for a period of one set of seven,[g] but after half this time, he will put an end to the sacrifices and offerings. And as a climax to all his terrible deeds, he will set up a sacrilegious object that causes desecration,[i] until the fate decreed for this defiler is finally poured out on him.”
Daniel 11:31 “His army will take over the Temple fortress, pollute the sanctuary, put a stop to the daily sacrifices, and set up the sacrilegious object that causes desecration.
Daniel 12:7 The man dressed in linen, who was standing above the river, raised both his hands toward heaven and took a solemn oath by the One who lives forever, saying, “It will go on for a time, times, and half a time. When the shattering of the holy people has finally come to an end, all these things will have happened.”
The watchman notes the prophecy “when the shattering of the holy people has finally come to an end, all these things will have happened.”
Since he first started this blog series on end times, he has thought about which temple and what sacrifices and offerings these refer to. Somehow he has always been led to intercede for Christian churches when he meditated on the end time verses. The more he prays the more he is led to believe that the Jerusalem and the temple mentioned are Christian churches and believers too.
Christians believe that their Savior (Messiah) Jesus has replaced the sacrifices of animals. Christians have received and are still keeping the Holy Communion which signifies Jesus’ body and blood in the form of bread and cup (fruit of the vine). Mark 14:22-24 describes how Jesus instituted the Holy Communion. Jesus took the bread, blessed and broke it and gave it to His disciples and said, “Take, eat, this is My body.” Then he took the cup, and when He had given thanks He gave it to them, and they all drank from it. And He said, “This is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many.” Hebrews 10:10 “By that we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” Heb.10:18 “Now where there is remission of these, there is no longer an offering to sin.” Believers have the boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus by a new and living way through His body. (10:19-20) In a recent sermon the aforementioned belief was affirmed.
After the service, the watchman recalled what he has lately thought about. That is, the body of Christ (the church and also the individual believer) are the holy city and the temple of God (as in 1 Cor.6:19). Believers are also the holy people of God. (1 Pet.2:9)
This in turn could mean that when we see the “stop of daily sacrifices and offerings” and the set up of “sacrilegious object that causes desecration” in the individual’s daily life and the church corporate lives, “and when he shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people, all these things shall be finished.”
How common and easily are sacrilegious objects (things, events, thoughts, communications, written and spoken words etc) and profanity being introduced into our homes, our minds, our way of life as individuals and as a church? The answer is obvious.
Indeed, the time of the end is here and now. Apostle John says, “Dear Children, the last hour is here. You have heard that the Antichrist is coming, and already many such antichrists have appeared.” (1 John 2:18) “Such a person has the spirit of the Antichrist, which you heard is coming into the world and indeed is already here.” (1 John 4:3) “We know that we are the children of God and that the world around us is under the control of the evil one.” (1 John 5:19)
It is no wonder that in the Book of Revelation, all the seven churches addressed by the Lord Jesus are under spiritual attacks. Ephesus: there are evil people, false apostles, and Nicolaitans (evil deeds); the believers suffer for Christ, but no longer love Jesus. Smyrna: blasphemy, synagogue of Satan, the devil. Threat of prison and death. Pergamum: located in Satan’s city where Satan has his throne; tolerated teachings of Balaam & Nicolaitans. Witness for Jesus martyred. Thyatira: Jezebel teaches God’s servants to commit sexual sin and eat food offered to idols. The church produces offsprings of Jezebel. Tolerates false teaching (depths of Satan) Sardis: seems (reputation) alive but in fact is dead; even what is left is almost dead. Actions do not meet God’s requirement. Clothes soiled /defiled (not wearing the righteousness of Jesus). Philadelphia: Satan’s synagogue is there. Laodicea: reprimanded for being neither hot nor cold. The church appears prosperous but is in fact spiritually wretched, miserable, poor, blind and naked in the eyes of God.
These are the end time churches. The time of the end is here and now. The “holy people” no longer have the resurrection power of the Holy Spirit as in the earlier churches (as in the Book of Acts). The churches do not believe in the power of sacrifices and offerings in the form of the Lord’s body and blood. Although the religious form is maintained the faith and original belief are no more in the hearts of “believers” and “churches”. Worship is not in Spirit and in truth because the spirit is either denied or of the Antichrist. The 'truth' is not Spirit-led life giving Bible truth, but mere words of man. The work is dead work without the Spirit.
Yet, even the valley of dry bones could be resurrected by the Holy Spirit. (Ezek 37)
Watchmen do not give up hope. Watch your home and your church, watchman! The enemy is within the camp.
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