The sign of the scarlet cord

The sign of the scarlet cord

Rahab was a prostitute in Jericho. Her house was on the city wall. People come and go to her home without being noticed. When Joshua sent two spies to scout out the land around Jericho, they went to the house of Rahab. But someone told the king of Jericho, "Some Israelites have come here tonight to spy out the land." So the king of Jericho sent orders to Rahab: "Bring out the men who have come into your house, for they have come here to spy out the whole land." But Rahab hid the two spies and told the king's officers that the men who came to her had already left. 

Later, Rahab went up on the roof where she hid the two spies and talked with them. She acknowledged the God of Israel is the true God. She said our hearts melted when we heard about the miracles your God performed to deliver the Israelites from Egypt, how the Lord made a dry path through the Red Sea. And how He helped Israel defeat their enemies on the way. She believed God of Israel is going to give Jericho also into the hands of Israel. 

 

Once she realized she and her relatives were in danger, she helped the spies by hiding them and asked them to spare her life when they conquer the land. The men agreed and said, "Behold, when we come into the land, you shall tie this scarlet cord in the window through which you let us down, and you shall gather into your house your father and mother, your brothers, and all your father's household" (Joshua 2:18).

 

The scarlet cord represents safety for all those who would believe and come for protection. The scarlet rope is a sign of protection. The people who are outside the house that was marked with a scarlet cord were in grave danger.  

 

Later, Rahab married Salmon and gave birth to Boaz. "Boaz fathered Obed, Obed fathered Jesse. Jesse fathered ... David" (1 Chronicles 2:12-13). Because of her faith in the God of Israel, Rahab became the great-great-grandmother of David and whose line the Messiah was born. No matter how sinful your past may be, Jesus can turn around your life when you repent and surrender your life to Him. When Rahab put her faith in the one true living God, He turned a prostitute to be counted in the genealogy of Jesus Christ (Matt. 1:5).

 The sign of the blood on doorposts

When Israel came out of Egypt, the Lord told Moses that the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel should kill their lambs at twilight. "Then they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses ...The blood shall be a sign for you, on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt" ( Exodus 12:6-7, 13). Those whose houses were marked by the blood were saved.  

 

The sign of the blood on the cross

 

In the New Testament, Jesus was the Passover lamb.  "The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!" (John 1:29).

 

As the writer of the Hebrews notes, "For it was indeed fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy, innocent, unstained, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens. He has no need, like those high priests, to offer sacrifices daily, first for his own sins and then for those of the people, since he did this once for all when he offered up himself" (Hebrews 7:26-27).

 

"Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins (Hebrews 9:22). Jesus Christ came into this world, lived a perfect life, and shed his precious blood on the cruel cross for the sins of humanity. 

 

Those who came inside the house where the lamb's blood is applied on the doorposts were saved. Those who went inside the house where the scarlet cord was tied were saved. Similarly, those who come under the blood of Christ will be saved. 

 

To come under the protection of the blood of Christ is to repent of one's sins and accept Him as Lord and Savior. "For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost (Matthew 18:11).

 

"And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up,  that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life" (John 3:14-15).

 

"But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. ... If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:7,9).

Dear friend, if you are reading this, it is not too late to go to Jesus Christ and confess your sins and receive the gift of salvation by faith. 

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Every person should know, what is the Church?

Every person should know, what is the Church?

 

What is the Church? Many people think of Church as a building where Christians gather for worship on a Sunday. The Church (ἐκκλησία ekklēsia) is a unique entity revealed and ordained by God and came into existence at the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit came upon the believers. The true meaning of "ekklēsia" is the "called out ones." Jesus started building His Church by calling out people to repentance and turn to Him. Jesus said, "... I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it" (Matthew 16:18). Jesus is the One who is building the Church. 

 

The Church, a group of people who are called out and set apart for the glory of God. God's view of the Church is seen as described by apostle Paul, "but you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy" (1 Peter 2:9-10). The job of the Church is to keep herself holy and "proclaim the praises of Him who called them out of darkness into His marvelous light." Apostle Paul writes, "He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins" (Colossians 1:13-14). The Church submits to Christ's authority as He is the Head of the Church. The relationship between Christ and the Church is likened to a bridegroom and a bride. "For I am jealous for you with godly jealousy. For I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ" (2 Cor. 11:2). The Holy Spirit is sanctifying the Church as a bride for the marriage. Paul also writes, "that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish" (Eph. 5:27). The Church was born on the day of Pentecost will be taken up to heaven at the Rapture. The Church will be presented as a bride for the Bridegroom Jesus Christ. "Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready" (Rev. 19:7).

 

The Beginning of the Church

 

There is no concept of the Church in the Old Testament. It was a mystery until it was revealed later in the New Testament. Sometimes people wrongly equate the Old Testament Israel with the Church in the New Testament. John the Baptist rightly understood this and acknowledged he was not part of the Church. He calls himself the friend of the bridegroom (Jesus) but not the bride. "He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom's voice. Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled (John 3:29). Jesus also said, "The law and the prophets were until John" (Luke 16:16).

 

Later, Jesus told His disciples that He must go to the Father in order to send the Holy Spirit to them. "Nevertheless I (Jesus) tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you. And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment" (John 16:7-8).

 

Later, after His death, burial, and resurrection, "He (Jesus) was taken up, after He through the Holy Spirit had given commandments to the apostles whom He had chosen, to whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God" (Acts 1:2-3). Just before his ascension, Jesus said to His disciples, "tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high" (Luke 24:49). Just like He promised, after seven days after His ascension, "when the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance" (Acts 2:1-4). Thus, the Church was formally born with the anointing and the visible presence of the Holy Spirit.

 

 The Church will be raptured before the whole world will be plunged into the great tribulation that will come upon the whole earth. The Holy Spirit also the Restrainer who dwells in a believer will be taken out of the way at the Rapture. The apostle Paul writes, "For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming" (2 Thess. 2:7-8). Paul describes, after the Church is raptured, then the Antichrist will be revealed. After the Church is taken out of the way, the focus will go back to the Jewish people to fulfill Daniel's seventieth week for seven years.

 

 

Message to the Church while awaiting the Rapture

 

 

The message to the Church is as follows:

 

·       Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life (Rev. 2:10).

·       To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God (Rev. 2:7).

·       And he who overcomes, and keeps My works until the end, to him I will give power over the nations—‘He shall rule them with a rod of iron; They shall be dashed to pieces like the potter's vessels’—as I also have received from My Father; and I will give him the morning star (Rev. 2:26-28).

·       He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments, and I will not blot out his name from the Book of Life; but I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels (Rev. 3:5).

·       He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more. I will write on him the name of My God and the name of the city of My God, the New Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God. And I will write on him My new name (Rev. 3:12).

·       To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne (Rev. 3:21).

 

Dear reader, we are now in the church age. Have you repented of your sins and asked Jesus Christ to be your Lord and Savior? It is a terrible thing to be left behind when Christ comes for His bride the Church at the Rapture. The world will experience unimaginable hardship on this earth under the Antichrist. Don't trust your good works. Bible says "...we are all like an unclean thing, And all our righteousness are like filthy rags" (Isaiah 64:6). The only righteousness that is valid before God is Christ's righteousness by removing our unrighteousness. "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9).

 

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Do you want to know what will happen next in the Middle East?

 

Will there be peace in the Middle East? Who is going to win the Israel Palestinian conflict? When the tensions go high between Israel and Arab nations, people want to know what will happen next. 

 

I want to explain what is going to happen in the Middle East. I am not writing what will happen in the future because I am a prophet.  "I am not a prophet, nor am I the son of a prophet" (Amos 7:14). I am writing the future because I study the prophets. Some of the things I am writing here may seem preposterous to a few people.

 

 

 

Before 1948, when some pastors preached from the Bible that God will bring back the nation of Israel, many scoffed at them. For almost 1900 years, there was no nation Israel, said the unbelievers. Scoffers questioned how a nation could come back that has gone out of existence for 1900 years. For man, it is impossible, but for God, all things are possible. In fact, God can bring a nation in one day just like the prophet Isaiah foretold:

 

 "Who has heard such a thing? Who has seen such things?

 Can a land be born in one day?

 Can a nation be brought forth all at once?

 As soon as Zion travailed, she also brought forth her sons” (Isaiah 66:8).

 

On May 14, 1948, David Ben-Gurion, the head of the Jewish Agency, proclaimed the establishment of the State of Israel. U.S. President Harry S. Truman recognized the new nation on the same day. The prophecy came to fulfillment, and the nation Israel was born in one day. And the rest is history. 

 

This should make the reader curious after seeing the fulfillment of a prophecy written during 750 BC. There are several prophecies concerning Israel that are yet to be fulfilled. 

 In the last days, the Jewish Temple will be rebuilt, and the temple sacrifices restored. Looking at the TV screens and watching the tensions flaring up in the Temple Mount recently, it appears, rebuilding the Jewish temple is an impossible task. 

 With all the details in my head, someday I will write a book, but for now, I should keep this short. 

 According to the Bible, we are now living in the "Church Age". When the rapture happens, all the truly born-again, born by the spirit Christians, both living and dead, will be taken out of this world with a glorified body.  

 The Apostle Paul writes, 

"… the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord" (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17).

 As millions of people disappear into thin air at the rapture, the corrupt mainstream media will convince the people left behind as some radiation or an alien invasion that caused the people to disappear. There will be lawlessness and turmoil in a scale the world has never seen. Out of the chaos, an insignificant leader emerges into the center stage and usurps power over many nations. The Bible calls this leader the Antichrist. 

 

The Antichrist will sign peace treaties with many nations and Israel for seven years (one week of years). It's ironic that Israel rejected their Messiah (the Christ) but accepts the Antichrist. By this time, Israel will have its temple rebuilt and the sacrificial system restored. The Antichrist will break his covenant in the middle of the seven-year treaty and halts the sacrifices in the temple. He enters the temple and declares himself as god. He begins persecuting the Jewish people in order to annihilate them. 

 

The next three and half years is the great tribulation. The great tribulation is a time of unprecedented suffering, especially for the Jewish people. It is also called the "Jacob's trouble." Many of them will flee to Petra. The Antichrist and his armies will ravage Israel. As the prophet Joel describes, they "have cast lots for my people, and have traded a boy for a prostitute, and have sold a girl for wine and have drunk it" (Joel 3:3). If you think the holocaust was the biggest tragedy for the Jewish people, six million Jewish people were killed, it will be nothing compared to what is going to happen during the time of the Antichrist. It is estimated that one in three Jews were killed during the holocaust. In the great tribulation, two out of three Jews will be killed. When the nation Israel goes through the tribulation, they realize their great sin of crucifying their Christ (Messiah) and accepting the Antichrist. The prophet Zechariah wrote,

"In the whole land, declares the Lord,

two thirds shall be cut off and perish,

and one third shall be left alive.

And I will put this third into the fire,

and refine them as one refines silver,

and test them as gold is tested.

They will call upon my name,

and I will answer them.

I will say, 'They are my people';

and they will say, 'The Lord is my God" (Zechariah 13:8-9).

 

Until the Church is raptured, and Israel goes through the tribulation, a partial hardening has come upon the Jewish people. When they repent and call for their Messiah, whom they crucified, then all Israel will be saved. The Apostle Paul writes,

"... a partial hardening has come upon Israel,

until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.

And in this way all Israel will be saved, as it is written,       

"The Deliverer will come from Zion,

he will banish ungodliness from Jacob";

 "and this will be my covenant with them

when I take away their sins" (Romans 11:25-27).

 

At the end of the seven-year tribulation period, Jesus Christ will come back and destroy Antichrist and establish his kingdom. When the Prince of Peace comes, there will be peace in Jerusalem.  Until then, there will be no peace. There will be no peace without the Prince of Peace. 

 

Dear reader, if you have a relationship with Jesus Christ, the next event that happens is the rapture. If you only have a religion and not a relationship, you will be left behind and will suffer through the tribulation. If you really understand the tribulation, you do not want to be there or do not want your loved one to be left behind. 

 

Jesus said ..., "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me" (John 14:6). "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved" (Acts 16:31). Those who reject Jesus Christ will be thrown into the lake of fire. 

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 Click here to read my previous article on “How can a loving God send someone to hell?”

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